Five outstanding picture books reviewed.

- Pool by Jihyeon Lee (Chronicle Books)

- The Princess and the Pony by Kate Beaton (Arthur A. Levine Books)

- Melissa's Octopus and Other Unsuitable Pets by Charlotte Voake  (Candlewick Press)

- Peanut Butter and Brains: A Zombie Culinary Tale by Joe McGee; pictures by Charles Santoso (Abrams Books for Young Readers)

- One Day, The End: Short, Very Short, Shorter-Than-Ever Stories by Rebecca Kai Dotlich; illustrated by Fred Koehler (Boyds Mills Press)