The six children get up each morning...

The six children get up each morning before dawn, eat their breakfasts, and--barefoot--begin their daily run to school. “Their feet remember the way in the dark . . . their legs take cold showers of morning dew.” In Running the Road to ABC, Haitian poet Denize Lauture has written a beautifully lyrical story that celebrates, in language as lush as the Haitian countryside, the joys of learning. Illustrator Reynold Ruffins’ gorgeous single- and double-page gouache pictures capture the cadence of Lauture’s rhythmic text and the vibrant colors of the children’s world. Together author and illustrator have created a book as “great and beautiful” as the ones it celebrates.

“Bad luck was hopping around like rabbits at a family reunion.” And no wonder: Old Man Trouble, with his smile as sharp as a ripsaw, was coming to visit. In Aunt Nancy and Old Man Trouble, Phyllis Root has written a rollickingly original American trickster tale about an old woman clever enough to get into the best of the worst kind of trouble. David Parkins has provided witty oil paintings and silhouette illustrations that are as delightfully spirited and funny as the story itself.

Mrs. Peachtree is as plucky as Aunt Nancy and perhaps even more perseverant in the face of her own trouble: learning to ride a two-wheeler, something that elderly ladies were not encouraged to do before the turn of the century. In Mrs. Peachtree’s Bicycle, local author Erica Silverman celebrates, with characteristic gentle humor, the determination of the elderly heroine whom readers first met in the popular “Mrs. Peachtree and the Eighth Avenue Cat.” Ellen Beier once again provides both full-page and spot watercolor art that firmly roots the story in its 19th century setting.

An uncertain young heroine finds grit--of both the character-building and garden variety--in On Sally Perry’s Farm. L.A. author Leah Komaiko has written a whimsical and rhyming story about a most unusual farm and, in Sally Perry, a most unusual farmer who welcomes the help of neighborhood kids and, in turn, has a sly way of helping them find satisfaction in learning self-confidence. There’s even a surprise ending as a bonus. Cat Bowman Smith adds to the energy of the story with her sprightly and engagingly exaggerated gouache illustrations.

Poor Millicent. Nothing ever pleases her. If the pebbles in the lake aren’t stubbing all her toes, the rain pounding on her roof gives her a headache. Lucky Millicent. She has a faithful friend in her neighbor Ellsworth, who patiently sets everything to right. Except that Millicent is still not satisfied. What’s Wrong Now, Millicent? is by another local author, Sue Alexander, who once again demonstrates her gift for writing funny small stories with large meanings. David Scott Meier has provided watercolor pictures in soft pastel colors that suggest a tropical setting--appropriately so, since, after all, Millicent and Ellsworth are not people but (surprise) hippos!

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RUNNING THE ROAD TO ABC. By Denize Lauture . Illustrated by Reynold Ruffins (Simon & Schuster: $16)

AUNT NANCY AND OLD MAN TROUBLE. By Phyllis Root . Illustrated by David Parkins (Candlewick: $16.99)

MRS. PEACHTREE’S BICYCLE. By Erica Silverman . Illustrated by Ellen Beier (Simon & Schuster: $15)

ON SALLY PERRY’S FARM. By Leah Komaiko . Illustrated by Cat Bowman Smith (Simon & Schuster: $15)

WHAT’S WRONG NOW, MILLICENT? By Sue Alexander . Illustrated by David Scott Meier (Simon & Schuster: $13)