Staff Favorites & Reviews

No staff is entirely static, staying exactly the same for years with no additions or subtractions. We realize that, but we're also pretty proud of our current personnel, and the many ways they've helped shape Exodus Books and point it in some unforeseen and wonderful directions. So, in 2011 we started asking each individual to share their favorite books, curricula, games, etc., and these pages are the result.

Because sharing favorites is fairly personal, we thought you should get to know each of these peculiar persons and asked them all to write a main bio, as well as section-specific bios. These are partly to show why they selected the titles and products in their lists, and partly just to show you that Exodus Books is inhabited by real people who do real things.

One of our biggest in-store services is making recommendations and helping people find what works best for them. These lists aren't as customer-specific, but they serve the same purpose—we're not just trying to parade our excellent taste or prove that we're literate, we're trying to help you discover things you may never have found otherwise, and maybe to rediscover some old favorites.

It's probably a fact universally true of book-lovers: given the chance, they'll talk your ear off about the books they love, the books they hate, and all the books you'll never read but that are really much better than the well-known books you will read. This isn't pretension. It's simply what happens to those who love words and want to share them. We've tried to cut the talk down here, though we'll gladly answer any pertinent questions.

With that, we present Staff Favorites. You'll find some overlap (lots of people seem to like The Chronicles of Narnia), but rarely if ever will you find complete consensus on a single title, product, or curriculum line. That's why we let everyone make their own lists: you know the official Exodus stance by reading our reviews, but the individuality that makes our store unique and awesome is what's on display here. Enjoy, and don't judge too harshly.

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81 Items found Print
Active Filters: Fiction & Literature, Kindergarten (Ages 5-6), Trade Paperback, New Books & Materials
Adventures of Paddy the Beaver
Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #19
by Thornton W. Burgess
Unabridged from Dover Publications
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$3.40
Albert
by Donna Jo Napoli
from Sandpiper Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$8.49
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
by Judith Viorst
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Always Room for One More
by Sorche Nic Leodhas
from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-3rd grade
1966 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.34 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Ant and the Elephant
by Bill Peet
from Sandpiper Books
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49
Apples to Oregon
by Deborah Hopkinson
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Arthur's Honey Bear
An I Can Read Book Level 2
by Lillian Hoban
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-3rd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$4.24
Babushka Baba Yaga
by Patricia Polacco
from Putnam Juvenile
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Baby Brains
by Simon James
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94
Beauty and the Beast
by Jan Brett
from Sandpiper Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Bed for the Winter
DK Readers Level 1
by Karen Wallace
1st edition from DK Children
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in DK Readers (Location: EAR-DK)
$4.24
Biggest Bear
by Lynd Ward
from Sandpiper Books
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-1st grade
1953 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Buford the Little Bighorn
by Bill Peet
from Houghton Mifflin
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49
Caps for Sale
by Esphyr Slobodkina
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Cinderella
by Marcia Brown (translator)
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1955 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79 $3.20 (1 in stock)
Cowardly Clyde
by Bill Peet
from Sandpiper Books
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49
Crow Boy
by Taro Yashima
from Puffin Books
Word Books for Preschool-2nd grade
1956 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Dandelion
by Don Freeman
from Puffin Books
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Days of the Blackbird OSI
by Tomie dePaola
from Puffin Books
for Prescool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94
Duffy and the Devil
by Harve Zemach
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
1974 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Emperor and the Kite
by Jane Yolen
from Putnam Juvenile
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
1968 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94
Empty Pot
by Demi
from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.34
Fishing in the Air
by Sharon Creech
from HarperCollins
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Frog and Toad Collection
by Arnold Lobel
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-2nd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$15.27
Funny Little Woman
by Arlene Mosel & Blair Lent
Reissue from Puffin Books
1973 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.09
Gingerbread Boy
by Paul Galdone
from Sandpiper Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Gullywasher (bilingual)
by Joyce Rossi
from Luna Rising
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.61
Happy Birthday, Moon
by Frank Asch
Revised from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Harriet, You'll Drive Me Wild!
by Mem Fox, illustrated by Marla Frazee
from Sandpiper Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Harry and the Lady Next Door
An I Can Read Book Level 1
by Gene Zion
from HarperCollins
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-1st grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$4.24
How My Parents Learned to Eat
by Ina R. Friedman
from Sandpiper Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Humble Pie
by Jennifer Donnelly
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$11.89
It Could Always Be Worse
by Margot Zemach
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Just Plain Fancy
by Patricia Polacco
1st edition from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Keeping Quilt
by Patricia Polacco
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
King Bidgood's in the Bathtub
by Audrey Wood & Don Wood
Reprint from Sandpiper Books
for Nursery-1st grade
1986 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
King Midas and the Golden Touch
by Charlotte Craft, Illustrated by K. Y. Craft
from HarperCollins
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
King's Chessboard
by David Birch & Devis Grebu
Reprint from Puffin Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94 $2.80 (1 in stock)
Leo the Late Bloomer
by Robert Kraus
from HarperCollins
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94
Letters from Father Christmas
by J. R. R. Tolkien
Revised from Mariner Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$21.25
Ling & Ting: Not Exactly the Same!
Passport to Reading Level 3
by Grace Lin
Passport to Reading Level 3
for Preschool-1st grade
Theodor Seuss Geisel Award Honor Book
in Early Readers (Location: EAR-MISC)
$4.24 $2.40 (3 in stock)
Little House
by Virginia Lee Burton
from Sandpiper Books
Personification Stories for Preschool-3rd grade
1943 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79 $3.20 (1 in stock)
Little Island
by Margaret Wise Brown, Leonard Weisgard
from Dragonfly Books
Picture Books for Preschool-2nd grade
1947 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Little Nino's Pizzeria
by Karen Barbour
1st edition from Sandpiper Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Madeline's Rescue
by Ludwig Bemelmans
from Puffin Books
Realistic Fiction, Rhyming Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1954 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$7.64
Magic Fan
by Keith Baker
from Sandpiper Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.80
Man Who Walked Between the Towers
by Mordicai Gerstein
from Square Fish Publishing
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
2004 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49
Mirette on the High Wire
by Emily Arnold McCully
from PaperStar Books
Realistic Fiction for Kindergarten-2nd grade
1993 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Money Tree
by Sarah Stewart
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49
My Friend Rabbit
Reissue from Square Fish Publishing
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Mysterious Tadpole
by Steven Kellog
from Puffin Books
Word Books for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Noah's Ark
by Peter Spier
from Dell Publishing
Bible Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Norman the Doorman
by Don Freeman
from Puffin Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Old Henry
by Joan W. Blos
from Mulberry Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94
Old Woman Who Named Things
by Cynthia Rylant
from Sandpiper Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49
Once a Mouse
by Marcia Brown
2nd edition from Aladdin Paperbacks
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1962 Caldecott Medal Winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Paper John
by David Small
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Penny and Her Doll
I Can Read Level 1
by Kevin Henkes
from Greenwillow Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$5.09
Penny and Her Marble
I Can Read Level 1
by Kevin Henkes
from Greenwillow Books
for Preschool-1st grade
2014 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$5.09
Picture for Harold's Room
I Can Read Level 1
by Crockett Johnson
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-1st grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$4.24
Princess and the Pea
by Hans Christian Andersen & Dorothee Duntze
from North-South Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$6.76
Rooster Crows
by Maud & Miska Petersham
Fir from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Kindergarten-4th grade
1946 Caldecott Medal winner
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$6.79
Rumpelstiltskin
by Paul O. Zelinsky
from Puffin Books
1987 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Sam, Bangs & Moonshine
by Evaline Ness
from Henry Holt and Company
Allegorical and Moral Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1967 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Sammy the Seal
An I Can Read Book Level 1
by Syd Hoff
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-1st grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$4.24
Sky Boys
by Deborah Hopkinson
from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Snowy Day
by Ezra Jack Keats
from Puffin Books
Poetry for Kindergarten-2nd grade
1963 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Story of Jumping Mouse
by John Steptoe
from HarperCollins
Native American Fable for Preschool-2nd grade
1985 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.94
Story, A Story
by Gail E. Haley
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1971 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79 $3.60 (2 in stock)
Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt
by Deborah Hopkinson
1st edition from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Swimmy
by Leo Lionni
from Dragonfly Books
for Nursery-1st grade
1964 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
The Journey
by Sarah Stewart & David Small
from Sunburst Book
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
The Raft
by Jim Lamarche
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64 $4.00 (1 in stock)
The Treasure
by Uri Shulevitz
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
1980 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Three Bears
by Paul Galdone
from Sandpiper Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Three Billy Goats Gruff
by Paul Galdone
from Sandpiper Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Three Little Pigs
by Paul Galdone
from Sandpiper Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Tough Boris
by Mem Fox
from Sandpiper Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79
Water Hole
by Graeme Base
from Puffin Books
for Nursery-1st
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49
Where the Wild Things Are
by Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
Fantasy for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1964 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.61 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears
by Verna Aardema, Leo & Diane Dillon
from Puffin Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1976 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.79