Joan Holub Books in Order

A school celebrates backwards day by reversing familiar routines. Books are read from back to front, and even commands mean their opposites, giving young readers a story in which ordinary classroom life becomes a playful puzzle.

Children demonstrate the signs for alphabet letters and words beginning with those letters. This illustrated introduction connects fingerspelling with familiar vocabulary, helping beginners see how hand movements can represent both individual letters and everyday words.

Ten young ballerinas prepare for a show, but each has something that needs sorting out first. Missing costume pieces, difficult choices, and a wish to keep a teddy bear nearby make getting ready part of the adventure.

Halloween creatures hide beneath oversized flaps while rhyming clues invite children to identify them. Ghosts, owls, and other seasonal figures turn the pages into a guessing game, with each lifted flap revealing the answer to a riddle.

Daisy is excited when her teacher lets her invite her pen pal Becky to school. The meeting brings an unexpected surprise when Becky turns out to be Bucky, leaving Daisy uncertain about how to respond to her visitor.

Daniel fills his week with jobs, from painting a toolshed to repairing his sister’s bicycle. As the days pass, his attempts to be useful become more mischievous, before Sunday finally gives the busy boy time to rest.

Ivy Green chooses bacteria as the subject of her book report, but classmates use it to spread a rumor that she has cooties. She must face the teasing and find a way to challenge the label they give her.

Friends arrive for a pajama party determined to stay awake all night. Pizza, movies, dancing, and ghost stories keep them busy, but the girls discover that carrying out their late-night plan is harder than they expected.

Everyday signs become the subject of a rhyming activity book that explains what they mean and why people use them. Matching stickers to the signs lets young readers connect familiar symbols with the messages they communicate.

Clark travels to a planet where dogs have authority over people. This early chapter book turns the familiar relationship between humans and their pets upside down, making a strange world out of animals children already know.

Mac Monster persuades his parents to celebrate Monster Day, but finding his surprise takes some effort. They hide riddles around the house, sending Mac on a hunt that depends on working out each clue along the way.

A boy swallows a fly, setting off a rhyming account of what happens inside his body. Illustrations and facts about digestion connect the silly incident with an explanation of how the human digestive system works.

Other girls at a sleepover call a young guest a scaredy-cat. Rather than accept their teasing, she tells a frightening story of her own, turning the party’s ghost-story contest into a chance to change their minds about her.

Abby enjoys being the best speller in her class until a new witch becomes her rival. A spelling bee puts both girls’ abilities to the test, with a new broomstick waiting for the one who wins.

Hidden ghouls await young readers in this Halloween lift-the-flap book. Its rhythmic text and concealed pictures make exploring the pages an active part of the spooky adventure, as children uncover the figures tucked behind the flaps.

Accounts of lost treasure across the United States and Canada introduce young readers to buried valuables and shipwreck discoveries. Regional stories connect the search for missing riches with local history, from coins on Florida beaches to treasures preserved in the Great Lakes.

Children celebrate Hanukkah by lighting candles, opening gifts, eating holiday foods, and playing dreidel. Each page adds another candle to the menorah, while flaps reveal details of the activities that mark the celebration across its nights.

Cinderdog enjoys ranch life with Cowboy Carl until Carl marries Cactus Kate and brings her cat, Wicked, into the family. Sharing his home with an unwelcome new companion forces the dog to cope with a changing household.

Noisy cats make such a mess that their owners send them outside. When the cats stay away, the suddenly quiet house feels different, leaving the family to wonder whether getting rid of the disruption was really what they wanted.

Bears of different kinds put on a show, join a parade, go skating, and eventually get ready for bed. Rhyming text follows their activities, turning a procession of busy bears into a simple story for beginning readers.

Children plant seeds and watch a pumpkin patch develop as their garden grows. This rhyming reader follows the work into harvest time, when the pumpkins can become pies and jack-o’-lanterns, connecting patient care with seasonal celebrations.

Ghost stories and historical accounts introduce haunted locations across every American state and parts of Canada. Young readers encounter mysterious hotels, unusual houses, and troubled caves, exploring how local places become associated with legends of visitors who never quite leave.

Suzanne, Max, and Jake work together to make a pizza, mixing dough before adding toppings and cheese. Their shared cooking project gives beginning readers a simple story that follows a familiar meal from preparation to the finished food.

A boy named Brad presents a report on Vincent van Gogh’s life and paintings. His cartoons appear alongside reproductions of the artist’s work, connecting a child’s perspective with the struggles and achievements behind pictures such as Starry Night.

Why do cats purr, hiss, and meow, and what are their whiskers, claws, and tails for? This illustrated reader answers questions about feline behavior and bodies, helping children understand the familiar animals they keep as pets.

Dogs bark, howl, bury bones, and greet people by licking and sniffing. This nonfiction reader explains those behaviors and introduces different kinds of dogs and the jobs they do, answering questions children may have about their pets.

Simple instructions show children how to draw animals found on farms and in zoos. Rhyming text pairs reading practice with drawing activities, inviting young artists to follow the directions and create recognizable creatures of their own.

Children learn to draw cars and trucks through simple directions presented in rhyming text. The activities combine early reading with making pictures, giving young artists a way to turn instructions into drawings of vehicles such as garbage trucks.

Family and friends gather to celebrate Passover after the table is prepared. Lift-the-flap scenes follow the Seder’s questions, foods, and search for the Afikomen, introducing children to the activities and traditions of a shared holiday meal.

At their grandmother’s doll hospital, Rose and Lila hear the history of Goldie, a doll owned by Eliza. Her family’s loss of wealth during the Great Depression links the doll’s past with the sisters’ present-day discoveries.

Children celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with crafts, Irish food, a play, and a parade. Flaps reveal more of their activities, while a hidden leprechaun on each spread adds a search game to this introduction to the holiday.

Jack Rabbit trades his lunch for magic jellybeans, taking a chance on an unusual bargain. Planting them brings a surprise and new trouble, turning the familiar beanstalk tale into an adventure with a curious rabbit at its center.

Children mark each day of Kwanzaa by lighting another candle on the Kinara and celebrating its daily principle. Lift-the-flap pictures extend the scenes, introducing young readers to the holiday’s meaning through the activities of the children taking part.

This science reader explains how shadows form and why their shapes change when a light source moves. It also introduces ways to make shadows, connecting a familiar everyday sight with activities children can try for themselves.

Rose and Lila reluctantly stay with their grandmother until her doll hospital reveals Tatiana’s story. The doll accompanied a Russian girl named Anya on a difficult journey to America, where arriving at Ellis Island brought new uncertainty.

A principal’s gingerbread cookie unexpectedly comes to life and runs loose through the school. Teachers, coaches, lunch staff, and the principal try to catch the runaway, bringing the familiar cookie chase into a setting children recognize.

Animal children show how difficult good table manners can be during a holiday meal. Rhyming instructions describe proper behavior, while the pictures reveal restless rhinos and unimpressed porcupines doing the very things they are told to avoid.

Children celebrate Rosh Hashanah by making cards, visiting temple and hearing the shofar. This lift-the-flap book introduces Jewish New Year traditions as the family enjoys apples dipped in honey and looks toward a sweet year.

Rose and Lila help their grandmother restore a Parisian dollhouse for a museum. Her ability to hear dolls' stories reveals the connection between its miniature family and a student at an 1890s boarding school.

This drawing guide combines rhymes and illustrated instructions for creating dinosaurs in ten steps or fewer. Young readers can follow along to draw creatures including Tyrannosaurus rex, Coelophysis and Nodosaurus while practicing their art.

A family prepares for Lunar New Year with a market visit, shared dinner and red envelopes from grandparents. Lift-the-flap scenes introduce the celebrations, leading to a parade and the dragon dance that gives the book its name.

This rhyming board book celebrates the Fourth of July through flying flags and fireworks lighting the sky. Its short verse and sparkling presentation introduce young children to the sights of America's birthday celebration.

Their grandmother's doll hospital introduces Rose and Lila to Glory, a doll given to an enslaved girl named May. Glory's story follows May's journey on the Underground Railroad as she seeks freedom from slavery.

Rhyming text and illustrated directions help beginning readers draw fairy princesses, dragons and elves. Each picture takes ten steps or fewer, combining an introduction to imagined creatures with a chance to practice drawing them.

Math becomes the subject of riddles and jokes involving animal sleepovers, cafeteria food fights and a boy making millions of dollars. The questions invite children to use basic mathematical ideas while working out the answers.

Rose and Lila find a damaged baby doll at their babysitter Jill's home and ask their grandmother to restore it. Hearing Marissa's story reveals her place in Jill's childhood and the aunt who gave her.

A fictional class prepares a report on the United States, with students researching groups of states. Maps, facts, jokes, and handwritten captions introduce geography and history, while additional sections explain national growth and the home states of presidents.

Rhyming couplets explore affection among animals in this touch-and-feel board book. Fuzzy patches invite children to feel details such as a rabbit's ears and a lamb's coat while following the celebration of love.

This illustrated introduction answers questions about horses, including their sounds, communication and the names for young and adult animals. Photographs accompany the explanations, helping beginning readers explore the animals and their everyday behavior.

Rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters and gerbils feature in this question-and-answer introduction for beginning readers. It explores their movements, ways of greeting each other and names for their young, offering facts about these small animals.

This collection combines jokes, rhymes and riddles with American history, ranging from the 1400s onward. Inventors, monuments, cowboys and astronauts become subjects for questions that introduce historical topics through playful wordplay and humor.

A visit to a Shaker village leads Rose and Lila to hear Charlotte's story. The doll belonged to Daisy, an orphan taken in by the Shakers after a cholera epidemic devastated her family in 1832.

Dogs and geography meet in this collection of riddles about places and the natural world. Questions involving oceans, planets, landforms and United States facts use playful word combinations to introduce geographical ideas to young readers.

A little girl wants to enjoy Halloween but fears the house of the neighborhood's Halloween Queen. Its decorations look frightening, yet the promise of good candy and a party tempts her to approach.

An older brother wonders what his new baby sibling can do, imagining absurd possibilities for feeding and daily life. Lift-the-flap answers bring the questions back to reality, introducing ordinary baby activities through humor.

This introduction explores wild and domestic birds through questions about feathers, nests, talking parrots and toys. Illustrations and photographs accompany explanations for beginning readers curious about the birds they watch or keep as pets.

Snakes, lizards and turtles are introduced through questions about their bodies and behavior. This illustrated guide explains skin shedding, tails and shells, using photographs alongside the text to help beginning readers learn about reptiles.

Decorated Easter eggs appear in different patterns, including stripes, spots and polka dots, in this board book. Rhyming verse follows the colorful eggs until they settle into their baskets at the end of the celebration.

Grandmothers take part in a variety of activities in this illustrated board book for young children. Shimmering pages introduce different things grandmas do, offering a simple celebration of these members of the family.

Baby animals celebrate their mothers in this illustrated board book. Different animal families show the things mothers do, with shimmering artwork accompanying the affectionate introduction to the bond between the young animals and their moms.

The Ant Hill children stage a play about their ancestors' first Thanksgiving. Their performance follows ants traveling on the Mayflower behind the Pilgrims, crossing the Atlantic and meeting new six-legged friends around a harvest meal.

Luke Howard's lifelong interest in clouds and weather leads him to develop a practical system for naming clouds. This account follows his life and work, introducing the observation behind the names used to distinguish cloud types.

The Ant Hill children work together on a large Valentine's Day card, decorating it with lace, glue and stars. As they consider possible recipients, their classroom project becomes a celebration of affection and appreciation.

Young Cleopatra questions her sisters' belief that beauty matters more than wisdom. When unrest among the kingdom's peasants threatens her father, she must use her knowledge and intelligence to protect the royal family.

Princess Elizabeth struggles to teach her pony to jump a stone wall. Advice from people around the kingdom fails to solve the problem, so she turns to her father, King Henry VIII, for guidance.

The Ant Hill children join a St. Patrick's Day parade with shamrocks and bagpipes. A chase after a leprechaun takes their celebration in a new direction, leading them toward the end of a rainbow.

Isabel and her brother Alfonso must leave their peaceful home when the king summons them to court. After his men accuse Alfonso of treason, Isabel faces a challenge to protect her brother and serve Spain.

Young Princess Lydia loves Hawaiian traditions but sees them fading as American influences grow. Writing down her culture's old stories becomes a way to preserve what matters to her and find reassurance during change.

Dressed in Halloween costumes, the Ant Hill children enter a spooky fun house. Strange sights and sounds unsettle them, and their flashlight offers a way to investigate what is really hiding in the dark.

Young bat Fink cannot fall asleep, so his siblings try telling him stories. A frightening owl tale, a pirate adventure and a princess romance keep him awake while his family searches for the right bedtime story.

Five fairies prepare the world for spring, tending flowers and painting a rainbow. Flaps and pop-ups reveal their work as the book counts down, inviting children to follow each fairy's contribution to the new season.

The ants enjoy watermelon and corn during a summer picnic in the park. As the afternoon gives way to sunset, their outing presents a new task: finding the way back home after a long day.

A winter snow day sends the Ant Hill children outdoors to count flakes, throw snowballs and build snow ants. Planning a sled ride brings questions about how many ants will fit and how fast they might travel.

The Ant Hill children plant a garden of their own and watch it grow as spring arrives. Their experience introduces seeds, flowers and the connection between April rain and the changes they see in May.

A class trip to an apple farm becomes a countdown from twenty to one. Children count passengers, animals, rows of trees and apples, with rhymes introducing grouping and addition as they enjoy the outing.

Groundhog characters attend a school devoted to weather and their namesake holiday. The story introduces Groundhog Day's beginnings, seasonal changes and ways plants and animals can offer clues about the weather people may experience.

Before picture day at the dog park, an energetic pack visits a pet salon for grooming. The dogs struggle to stay still, and curious cats make the preparations increasingly chaotic as everyone tries to get ready.

Twinkle plans to share her favorite song when she becomes Star of the Week in Ms. Sun's class. Another star performs it first, leaving her searching for something else that will make her turn special.

Children use a hand-shaped flap to act out small gestures, from patting a puppy to blowing a kiss. This interactive board book explores the things little hands can do, including greeting others and playing peekaboo.

Two girls move from Missouri to Oregon in different centuries, one by covered wagon and one by minivan. Their parallel journeys compare the challenges of the Oregon Trail with the familiar worries of leaving friends and home.

As morning arrives, Duck's quack wakes a neighbor and begins a chain of farm animal sounds. Large flaps let readers open each animal's mouth and guess its call while the farm gets ready for a new day.

Zero believes he can be a hero, but the other numbers dismiss him as useless. When danger arrives in the form of Roman numerals, he gets a chance to prove that nothing can still have value.

Young dancers move from ballet lessons to rehearsals and a performance, practicing their steps along the way. This rhyming early reader introduces the experience of getting ready for a show, from first movements to final curtsies.

A class visits a pumpkin patch and counts everything it sees, working backward from twenty. Rhymes, pictures, and pumpkin facts turn the autumn outing into a chance to practice numbers while following the children through the farm.

Dump trucks, a mixer, a digger, and a crane work together on a busy construction site. This rhyming early reader follows the digging and building action through a day of imaginative play with toy vehicles.

Little Red, a pencil at Pencilvania School, sets out to write a story with a basket of nouns. Tangled sentences and a dangerous pencil sharpener complicate her journey in this fairy-tale adventure about creative writing.

After the Plymouth harvest of 1621, Pilgrims and their Wampanoag neighbors share a three-day feast. This history for young readers explores that celebration and the background to the event later associated with the Thanksgiving holiday.

The discovery of gold in California in 1848 draws people from around the world hoping to become wealthy. This illustrated history follows the forty-niners, mining camps, and the gap between dreams of riches and actual experience.

Pandora's mother tells her not to open a box, but waiting proves difficult for the curious child. Touching and leaning on it bring her closer to trouble in this everyday story inspired by the Pandora myth.

Pandora receives a shining gold box with a warning to keep it closed, but curiosity wins. When troublesome bugs escape, she must face the consequences of opening it in this retelling for beginning readers.

Construction vehicle fathers guide their smaller children through work at a building site. Dump trucks, cranes, mixers, and forklifts show how dads protect, encourage, and teach their young ones while helping them learn new tasks.

Hercules wants to show how strong he is, but his rough play destroys his little sister's block tower. He needs to use that strength more thoughtfully and find a way to put things right.

The Trojans receive a huge wooden horse from the Greeks and celebrate what seems to be the end of war. Hidden soldiers make the gift dangerous in this early-reader retelling of the Trojan horse story.

Shipwrecked on their way home from Troy, Odysseus and his men become prisoners of a one-eyed monster. With Cyclops threatening to eat them, Odysseus needs a clever escape plan to bring his companions to safety.

France gives the United States a statue intended to celebrate its independence, but creating and installing it is a major undertaking. This history explains the Statue of Liberty's design, construction, transport, and changing appearance.