Agnes and Clarabelle Celebrate!

K-Gr 2—Agnes and Clarabelle know everything is better when your best friend is there. These two friends are lucky enough to celebrate their holidays together. Each holiday provides different opportunities for problems to occur; the girls deal with allergies during the May Day fair, cope with nerves during the Fourth of July parade, and accidentally sleep through the New Year, but as true friends they always help lift each other up. Part of the new "Read and Bloom" line of titles for newly independent readers, this series by Griffin and Sheinmel offers short, episodic chapters with full-color illustrations on every page. For those transitioning to longer texts, these simple, character-driven story lines are easy to follow, and the charming illustrations let kids make the bridge from picture books to chapter books.