“Wolfie the Bunny” by Ame Dyckman, illustrated by Zachariah O’Hora, Little Brown & Co. (2015)

In the world of big sisters, little brothers are the worst. As a big sister with several “little” brothers, I was quick to sympathize with Dot, the feisty bunny and older sister in Ame Dyckman’s newest picture book, “Wolfie the Bunny.” In the tradition of Kevin Henkes’ “Julius, The Baby of the World,” and Jan Ormerod’s “The Baby Swap,” this laugh-out-loud picture book explores the change in family dynamic when a new baby arrives — the parents can find no fault with their bundle of joy, while the big sis isn’t so sure what she did to deserve this terrible fate.

The Bunny family finds a bundle on their doorstep. “They peeked. They gasped. It was a baby wolf! ‘He’s adorable!’ said Mama. ‘He’s ours!’ said Papa. ‘He’s going to eat us all up!’ said Dot. But Mama and Papa were too smitten to listen.”

“HE’S GOING TO EAT US ALL UP!” But Mama and Papa were too smitten to listen.

Wolfie slept through the night. Dot did not.

Wolfie clearly adores Dot but she is still not convinced. “He’s going to eat us all up!” is her refrain throughout the book. When all her friends come to visit, they are of the same mindset. Wolfie follows Dot everywhere she goes, and when he drools on her, Papa just says, “He’s a good drooler!” Wolfie (and his appetite) have grown so fast that the Bunny family has run out of carrots. Mama sends Dot and Wolfie to the grocery store, aptly named “The Carrot Patch,” to get some more carrots. At this point in the story, O’Hora illustrates Wolfie in a pink onesie that has bunny ears, and the reader will have officially fallen in love with Wolfie.

At the Carrot Patch, Wolfie opens his mouth wide and Dot says, “I knew it! On guard!” as her worst fears come true — her wolf brother is going to eat her all up! On closer inspection, Wolfie is actually growling at a big, ferocious bear. The bear picks up Wolfie, yelling “DINNER!” Instead of running away, Dot stands her ground. “Let him go!” Dot demanded. “Or…I’LL EAT YOU ALL UP!” When the bear points out the obvious — that he is a large bear, and Dot is a small bunny — Dot just says, “I’ll start on your toes!” The bear runs away in fright, and Wolfie is no longer in peril of being eaten. Wolfie pounces, but only to give Dot a big wolf-hug. In the end, it seems, little brothers really are the best.

Katie Hathcock will be at Lemuria on Saturday, February 28, 2015 at 10 AM for a “Readin’ and Rockin’ Storytime.”

Music for Aardvarks combines music, dance, rhythm, and story-telling in an action-packed class for kids 6 months to 5 years. Musician and mom Katie Hathcock discovered the program with her own children several years ago and can’t wait to share it with families in Jackson.

Come to storytime with Katie on February 28 to see what it is all about! We’ll be reading AND singing along, and it will be fun for the whole family.

Visit www.jacksonaardvarks.com for more info about how to register for weekly classes and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

“Red Butterfly” is one of those books I picked up because the title sounded interesting, but then I was instantly drawn in by the narrator’s voice, and what a wonderful read! Kids will enjoy this book even though it is in verse because the story moves along at a nice pace, and Kara’s voice is just like any other child her age. The smattering of illustrations by Amy June Bates also complement the book.

There has been a recent trend of books written in verse getting a couple of award nods. “The Crossover” by Kwame Alexander won the 2015 Newbery Medal, and “Brown Girl Dreaming” by Jacqueline Woodson is the 2014 National Book Award Winner for Young People, as well as a 2015 Newbery Honor Book.

There are many people who shy away from books in verse — maybe it seems intimidating, or feels too much like reading a long poem, but whatever the reason, it’s actually one of the easiest forms of writing for a child to read. There are less words on the page, and it reads like a train of thought.

Reading verse is like getting a snapshot of the narrator’s mind. That point-of-view is crucial in “Red Butterfly,” where Kara is constantly in motion, moving from one living situation to the next.

Set in modern-day China, Kara is a Chinese girl who has only known life with her adoptive American mother in the city of Tianjin, China. She is not legally adopted, so when a random emergency throws their life into disarray, the authorities no longer allow her to live with her mother. She is sent to an orphanage where another family wants to adopt her. She is torn between finding the mother she knows and going to live with the new family who offers her a new life in America.

Influenced by the author’s own time living and working in China, Sonnichsen did a beautiful job depicting the different issues with adopting children from China.

Kara’s voice shines through in “Red Butterfly,” and several points in the book were heart-wrenching, such as her friendship with Xiao Bo, the little boy at the orphanage with cerebral palsy. “Red Butterfly” triumphs by showing that home and family is with the people you love, wherever in the world they might be.

Here are some books to let your little ones know that you love them.

“Happy Valentine’s Day Mouse” by Laura Numeroff

Mouse from Numeroff’s classic “If You Give A Mouse A Cookie” is making Valentine’s cards for all of his friends! In board book format, each page is dedicated to why Mouse loves each of his friends.

“Llama Llama I Love You” by Anna Dewdney

‘Llama Llama valentines. Cupids, lace, and heart designs. Make a card for every friend. Some to give…and some to send.’ Perfect for your budding reader to follow along with the fun rhyme!

“Pete the Cat: Valentine’s Day is Cool” by Kimberly James Dean

Pete the Cat doesn’t think Valentine’s Day is very cool until he starts making cards for everyone he knows—then he starts to have fun! Your valentines don’t have to be Martha Stewart worthy for your friends to like them. What’s even better is that this book has Valentine’s Day cards included for your child to give to his or her friends.

“Hug Machine” by Scott Campbell

A little boy who calls himself “the Hug Machine” hugs everyone and everything: bears, turtles, trees, family and friends. To the porcupine who asks, “What about me? I am so spiky. No one ever hugs me.” Our hugging hero says, “They are missing out!” Even the prickliest of friends will be warmed by a hug (and this book) this Valentine’s Day.

The Very Fairy Princess Follows Her Heart by Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton

Geraldine’s favorite day is Valentine’s Day because she can use “TONS of glitter, sequins, and feathers” to make valentines for her friends. When she takes her daddy’s work folder to school instead of her folder filled with the valentines she worked so hard to create, her day is sure to be ruined! But very fairy princesses always know what to do in a sticky situation, and she improvises. Julie Andrews’s writing and storytelling is practically perfect in every way.

On Christmas Eve, 1956, a little bear sat alone on a shelf in the London department store, Selfridges, one of the dregs of the Christmas toys. Thankfully for him (and us, now in 2015), a BBC cameraman named Michael Bond was doing some last-minute Christmas shopping. He took pity on the bear and gave it to his wife as a gift.

Bond named the little bear Paddington after Paddington Station, and as he says, “I wrote some stories about the bear, more for fun that with the idea of having them published. After 10 days, I found that I had a book on my hands.”

On Oct. 13, 1958, William Collins & Sons (now HarperCollins) published “A Bear Called Paddington,” illustrated by Peggy Fortnum. And by 1965, the Paddington book business was booming, and Bond quit his job at BBC to write.

If you have not been hit with the Paddington craze, now is the time. The new movie was delightful — Nicole Kidman as the sinister taxidermist is just scary enough for kids, and Hugh Bonneville of “Downton Abbey” makes a laugh-out-loud funny Mr. Brown. In the recesses of your memory, you might remember the bright red hat and the blue duffel coat.

Here’s the gist of the story for those of you who have a faint recollection of a bear in a red hat and blue duffel coat who likes orange marmalade. Paddington has impeccable manners and hails from “Darkest Peru,” actually having been modeled after the endangered Andean spectacled bear.

Paddington’s Aunt Lucy sends him to London with a tag around his neck that says “Please look after this bear. Thank you.” The Browns find Paddington underneath the lost-and-found sign in Paddington Station and take him home to 32 Windsor Gardens (an address which does not actually exist, but is an amalgamation of two addresses Bond was familiar with).

Along with the two Brown children, Jonathan and Judy, and the tough housekeeper, Mrs. Bird, Paddington fits right in despite flooding the bathroom and an insatiable appetite for orange marmalade sandwiches.

Now illustrated by R.W. Alley, you and your child can read about Paddington in one of the many stories about him, such as the recently released “Love from Paddington,” or “Paddington Bear in the Garden,” “More About Paddington” (out Feb. 24), and “Paddington at the Beach.”