Harriet the Zen Hen is either one of the lightest books on our Autumn 2006 list or the most profound. The answer will be up to our readers and their state of consciousness. Those most Buddha-like will know exactly what Harriet's saying. The rest of us birdbrains can just follow along and enjoy the truly enlightened chicken and her Zen wisdom. Anybody who transcends the everyday life of the chicken coop must have reached a higher spiritual plane. Harriet has, as evidenced by her ponderings such as 'We are what we think we are. Hen or Chicken, the choice is yours.' And, contemplating an egg, 'Neither fire nor wind, birth nor death can tell us which came first.' This fowl understands the Zen world and is willing to share it with the rest of us. Consider her pithy koan tale: A nesting hen, wanting to impress her Zen master, said, "There is only nothing. The nature of phenomena is emptiness." The master sat still and said nothing. Suddenly, he pushed the hen off her nest and stole the eggs she had just laid. This made the young hen angry. 'Give me back my eggs!' she cried. 'What eggs?' inquired the master. Harriet will have you clucking - and thinking - all the way to enlightenment.

"A fresh and moving story of a mother's dedication to acquire a coat for her daughter in post-World War II hard times. Anna's mother decides to trade the few valuables she has left for wool and for the services of a spinner, a weaver, and a tailor. Lobel's pictures do a tremendous job of evoking the period. Insightful and informative, this may make children consider how precious the ordinary can become in times of turmoil."--(starred review) Booklist

When the government comes for her mother, Emmeline embarks on a plan to save her family and expose the truth behind the objectives of the United Nations' agenda 21.

Vols. 1-7 include music.

Whether speaking of student or master, Zen hinges on the question. Zen practice does not necessarily focus on the answers, but on finding a space in which we may sustain uncertainty and remain present and upright in the middle of investigations. Zen Questions begins by exploring "The World of Zazen,"--the foundational practice of the Zen school--presenting it as an attitude of sustained inquiry that offers us an entryway into true repose and joy. From there, Leighton draws deeply on his own experience as a Zen scholar and teacher to invite us into the creativity of Zen awareness and practice. He explores the poetic mind of Dogen with the poetry of Rumi, Mary Oliver, Gary Snyder, and even "the American Dharma Bard" Bob Dylan. What's more, Leighton uncovers surprising resonances between the writings of America's Founding Fathers--including Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin--and the liberating ideals at the heart of Zen.

Whether used for thematic story times, program and curriculum planning, readers' advisory, or collection development, this updated edition of the well-known companion makes finding the right picture books for your library a breeze. Generations of savvy librarians and educators have relied on this detailed subject guide to children's picture books for all aspects of children's services, and this new edition does not disappoint. Covering more than 18,000 books published through 2017, it empowers users to identify current and classic titles on topics ranging from apples to zebras. Organized simply, with a subject guide that categorizes subjects by theme and topic and subject headings arranged alphabetically, this reference applies more than 1,200 intuitive (as opposed to formal catalog) subject terms to children's picture books, making it both a comprehensive and user-friendly resource that is accessible to parents and teachers as well as librarians. It can be used to identify titles to fill in gaps in library collections, to find books on particular topics for young readers, to help teachers locate titles to support lessons, or to design thematic programs and story times. Title and illustrator indexes, in addition to a bibliographic guide arranged alphabetically by author name, further extend access to titles.