Virginia Beach, Virginia

Buster Saves the Day by Marc Brown. Little, Brown, 2006. In this easy-to-read book version of the Postcards from Buster episode "Buster's League of Champions," Buster and his new friends from Virginia Beach make their own superhero movie.

The Bionic Bunny Show by Marc Brown and Laurene Krasny Brown. Little, Brown, 1984. Wilbur becomes the Bionic Bunny with help from the TV production crew. Take a peek behind the scenes to see how Bionic Bunny saves the day. At home, Wilbur's family jokes about his "bionic powers."

Max by Bob Graham. Candlewick, 2000. Max's mom and dad are superheroes, so it's pretty embarrassing when Max can't learn to fly.

My Very Own Room/Mi propio cuartito by Amada Irma Pérez. Children's Book Press, 2000. Tired of sharing a room with her five brothers, Amanda longs for a corner of the house she can call her own. With the help of her family she transforms a storage closet into her very own room. (Bilingual: English/Spanish)

Seattle, Washington (Martial Arts)

Fortune Cookie Fortunes by Grace Lin. Knopf, 2004. Do you believe in fortune cookies? In this Chinese family, one daughter notices that everyone's fortunes are coming true! Where will their fortunes lead?

JoJo's Flying Side Kick by Brian Pinkney. Simon & Schuster, 1995. JoJo is nervous-her Tae Kwon Do test is tomorrow. She wants to earn her yellow belt. Can she break the board with her flying side kick?

Karate Boy by Ann Morris. Dutton, 1996. Simple text and colorful photographs, featuring both boys and girls, introduce the reader to the world of karate schools. (Also available in Spanish.)

Seattle, Washington (Music)

Camp Granada: Sing-Along Camp Songs by Frané Lessac. Holt, 2003. Sing old favorites such as "Rise and Shine," "The Peanut Song," "Do Your Ears Hang Low," "This Land Is Your Land," and "Kum Ba Yah."

Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah by Allan Sherman. Dutton Books, 2004. An illustrated version of the well-known satiric song about the angst and joy of summer camp.

How Sweet the Sound by Wade Hudson. Scholastic, 1995. From spirituals to jazz, this book brings together African-American music from many different eras to create a musical history of the African experience in America.

Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen by DyAnne DiSalvo-Ryan. William Morrow, 1991. A young boy visits the soup kitchen where his Uncle Willie works. His feelings of discomfort fade as he helps the warm community of volunteers prepare and serve food to the lunchtime crowd.

Madison, Wisconsin

Buster and the Dance Contest by Marc Brown. Little, Brown, 2005. In this companion book to the Postcards from Buster episode "Among the Hmong," Buster travels to Madison, Wisconsin. While there, he meets the Vangs of Vang Lane, and learns about traditional Hmong dance.

Hello, World! Greetings in 42 Languages Around the Globe by Manya Stojic. Scholastic, 2002. "Jambo!" they say in Swahili. "O-si-yo!" is the Cherokee greeting. Find many more ways to say hello in this book with simple text and illustrations.

Loving by Ann Morris. HarperTrophy, 1994. This book of photographs shows families from many parts of the world, and ways they all share moments of love and caring.

Nine-in-One. Grr! Grr! by Blia Xiong. Children's Book Press, 1989. A simple, humorous Hmong folktale about what happens when a mother tiger with a poor memory meets a clever bird.

The Whispering Cloth by Pegi Deitz Shea. Boyds Mills Press, 1995. Mai, a Hmong girl, lives with her grandmother in a refugee camp. Her grandmother teaches her to embroider traditional "pa'ndau" story cloths.

Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Animal Tracks by Arthur Dorros.Scholastic, 1991. Whose tracks are whose? Which animal was running and why? This book invites the reader to solve the mystery before it provides the answers.

If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Numeroff. HarperCollins, 1991. If you give a moose a muffin, he's going to ask for some jam to go with his muffin. Then when the muffins are all gone, he'll want you to go to the store to buy some more. There's no end of fun and trouble in this circular story! (Also available in Spanish.)

Moose by Jenny Markert. The Child's World, 2000. What do moose look like? What do they eat? Large photos and simple text answer these questions and more.

Thidwick, the Big-Hearted Moose by Dr. Seuss. Random House, 1948. When Thidwick lets a little Bingle Bug ride on his antlers, he has no inkling of the complications that soon unfold.

Wind River Reservation, Wyoming

Hoops by Robert Burleigh. Voyager Books, 2001. Basketball comes alive through poetic text and dynamic pastel art of teenagers on the court.

Jingle Dancer by Cynthia Leitich Smith. Morrow, 2000. Jenna borrows jingles from the dresses of her older friends and relatives and sews them on her own so that she can perform the jingle dance at the Muscogee Nation powwow.

Powwow by George Ancona. Harcourt, 1993. Stunning photos from a "pan-Indian" Crow fair in Montana introduce readers to contemporary powwows. Young Anthony Standing Rock and his friends are shown both in T-shirts and jeans and in full regalia for the Traditional, Fancy, Grass, and Jingle dances.

Strong to the Hoop by John Coy. Lee & Low, 1999. Finally, 10-year-old James gets a chance to play basketball with the big kids and prove that he can hold his own. (Also available in Spanish.)

Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada

Building an Igloo by Ulli Steltzer. Holt, 1981. Photographs and simple text show the step-by-step process of building an igloo.

Nessa's Fish by Nancy Luenn. Atheneum, 1990. Nessa and her grandmother go off to the stony lake and catch many fish. But when Nessa's grandmother gets sick, it is up to Nessa to watch over her grandmother and guard the fish.

A Sled Dog for Moshi by Jeanne Bushey. Hyperion, 1994. A surprise spring snowstorm catches Moshi and her friend Jessica while they are out exploring in Iqualuit. Jessica forgot to bring mittens. Will the girls make it home by nightfall?

Very Last First Time by Jan Andrews. Atheneum, 1986. Eva and her mother live in an Inuit village in Northern Canada. When they want mussels to eat, they walk under the ice, on the bottom of the sea, to get them. Today Eva will walk under the ice by herself for the very first time.

Whale Snow by Debby Dahl Edwardson. Charlesbridge, 2003. Amiqqaq and his family live off the Arctic coast of Alaska. His Papa is a whaling captain and comes home one evening with a big surprise for Amiqqaq.

Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico

Eight Animals on the Town/Ocho animales by Susan Middleton Elya. G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2000. (English with some Spanish.) Eight "animales" (animals) head to the "mercado" (market) to buy their favorite foods in this bilingual counting book.

From the Bellybutton of the Moon by Francisco X. Alarcon. Children's Book Press, 1998. In these playful poems, the author shares memories of his childhood in Mexico. The Aztec word for Mexico means "bellybutton of the moon." (Bilingual: English/Spanish.)

Home at Last by Susan Middleton Elya. Lee & Low, 2002. Leaving Mexico behind, coming to the US, and learning a new language is a challenge, especially for Ana's mama. This is a warm story about a family who supports each other as they overcome obstacles and build a new home for themselves in the US.

My Mexico~México mío by Tony Johnston. G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1996. These poems in English and Spanish describe the colors, sounds, and sights of parts of Mexico, places the author remembers as "her Mexico."

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Abuelita's Paradise by Carmen Santiago Nodar. Whitman, 1992. In her room, Marita has a rocking chair that her grandmother ("abuelita") gave her. She rocks in the chair and remembers the stories Abuelita used to tell her about growing up in Puerto Rico.

Grandma's Records by Eric Velazquez. Walker & Company, 2001. Eric has happy memories of the summers he spent with his Puerto Rican Grandma and the music they enjoyed listening to together.

My Name Is María Isabel by Alma Flor Ada.Maxwell Macmillan, 1993. More than anything, third grader María Isabel, born in Puerto Rico and now living in the U.S., wants to fit in at school. (Also available in Spanish.)

Shake It, Morena! by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand. Millbrook Press, 2002. Games, songs, riddles, and stories from Puerto Rico.