Toni Morrison: Literary Icon: Children's Books

To make three youngsters - Patty, Mickey and Liza Sue - abide by their rules, the grown-ups - parents, teachers and other adults - create a world inside a box, a world with toys, games, treats and gifts. But all Patty, Mickey and Liza Sue really want is the freedom to be themselves.

Toni Morrison's second picture book written with her son, Slade Morrison, offers a humorous look at how children interpret daily events. Sometimes people are mean intentionally, sometimes not. But this wise child, rendered as a delightful cartoon bunny by Pascal Lemaitre, learns how to rise above all meanness in the end.

Little Cloud likes her own place in the sky, away from the other clouds. There, the sky is all hers. She is free to make her own way and go where she wishes. Can Lady Wind show Little Cloud the power of being with others? Will Little Cloud agree there is strength in unity and change her ways? A fresh take on a classic story, Little Cloud and Lady Wind will teach kids how to work together to achieve their goals.

Snuggle, snuggle. Time to rest. Nana joins us in her nest. There is no one like Nana in the whole wide world. She is the best. Nana knows how to take an ordinary afternoon and make it extra special! Nap time, story time, and playtime are transformed by fairies, dragons, dancing, and pretending -- and then mixing and fixing yummy, yummy fudge just like Nana and Mommy did not so many years ago.

A library card unlocks a new life for a young girl in this picture book about the power of imagination, from the Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison. On one gray afternoon, Louise makes a fateful trip to the library. With the help of a new library card and through the transformative power of books, what started out as a dull day turns into one of surprises, ideas, and fun, fun, fun! Inspired by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison's experience working in a library as a young girl, this engaging picture book celebrates the wonders of reading, the enchanting capacity of the imagination, and, of course, the splendor of libraries.

Everyone knows that in the story of the Tortoise and the Hare the slow and steady tortoise wins always wins. Or does he? In this energetic retelling Hare wins but the Tortoise has the story to tell. So you decide, what makes a winner?

Written by Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison and her son Slade Morrison, Pascal Lemaitre's ingenious illustrations add a wry sophistication to this already vibrant and defiantly ambiguous book. In our versions', says Toni Morrison, 'the original stories are opened up and their moralistic endings re-imagined: The victim might not loose; the timid gets a chance to become strong; the fool can gain insight; the powerful may lose their grip. Anything can happen. For All Ages.'

A hip and lively retelling of Aesop's The Ant and the Grasshopper about a colony of industrial ants who work hard and prepare while a grasshopper apparently does nothing.

Illustrated by Pascal Lemaitre. For all ages The second in a series of six illustrated books retelling Aesop's fables in a hip and lively manner, this book is a deft and witty send-up of a culture that sucks up to anyone with the trappings of power. The baddest in the land' cocky lion believes himself invincible until he gets a thorn stuck in his paw. Only a little mouse can help him, so the lion must indulge the mouse's greedy pride and lust for power. The mouse believes a lion's physique is all he needs to be king of the jungle, but finds it tough with only a squeak...'