Just Like My Papa - Tapa dura

Kito wants to be just like his papa, the protector of the pride. Throughout a day and night on the savanna, the cub imitates the way his father roars, swings his tail, shakes his head, and pounces. Kito may be too little to catch a wildebeest, but he is brave enough to succeed in his own hunt. Someday he will be King, just like Papa.

With its rhythmic text, dramatic moments on the African plain, and playful times for cub and papa, this book will make a perfect read-aloud for family sharing.

Toni Buzzeo (www.tonibuzzeo.com) is a children's book author and reviewer and retired school library media specialist. She speaks at national, state, and regional library and reading conferences and does author visits at schools across the country. Her most recent books are Stay Close to Mama, a companion to this book, and theNew York Times best-selling One Cool Friend, ilustrated by David Small. Her bookDawdle Duckling, illustrated by Margaret Spengler, was a Children's Book of the Month Club selection and a Dolly Parton Imagination Library selection.No T. Rex in the Library was one of five books featured in Cheerios boxes in Fall 2010. She divides her time between a colonial farmhouse in Buxton, Maine, and a home near the ocean in Sarasota, Florida.

Mike Wohnoutka (www.mikewohnoutka.com) grew up in Spicer, Minnesota. His dad, an engineer, would bring home reams of paper with highway plans on one side. Mike filled the blank side of the sheets with drawings of race cars, snowmobiles, baseball players, super heroes-everything he was interested in. In high school his art teacher encouraged him to pursue art as a career. He graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design with a B.F.A. in illustration. Mike has published books with Random House, Dutton, Clarion, and Holiday House. He enjoys visiting schools and talking to students about illustrating children's books. He currently resides in Minneapolis with his wife and two children.