Here are 100 books that Chirri & Chirra, Underground fans have personally recommended if you like
Chirri & Chirra, Underground.
Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.
I’m a Minnesota-based children’s writer focusing on a mix of books for kids ages baby to teen. I love writing stories as well as nonfiction books focused on Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). After more than 25 years spent writing for a young audience, I started thinking about how I may be old but don’t necessarily feel old. An image came to mind: a rusty, dusty old tricycle. How might “Trike” feel if a happy, snappy new bike were to appear in the garage? Bike & Trike is the story that arose, one about old vs. new and a daring challenge to determine which bike will be the winner on wheels.
Originally published in Japanese, this multicultural story portrays little Chirri and Chirra, an adventurous duo (two girls) who take a leisurely bike ride full of discovery. Through forest paths and alleyways, the girls experience an adventure that’s best enjoyed on wheels.
Dring-Dring go their bike bells, all through the town!
Having explored blossoming fields, a magical mound of tall grass, crystal caves and underground passageways, here Chirri and Chirra explore life in town!
Winner of Multicultural Award, 2021 Northern Lights Book Awards
In this fifth book of perhaps the most charming series ever, Chirri and Chirra venture down forest paths and through alleyways into a yarn shop and an old woman's house, where they enjoy hot drinks and soup. When they're done, they find a wonderful surprise hidden in the branches of a tree. Memorable for Doi's luminous appreciation of the natural world as well as her respect for beautiful…
As a cyclist from a young age (thanks to the encouragement and engineering of my dad—he literally welded one of my first bikes together from the carcass of another kid’s bike that was run over by a car in his driveway on accident), I’ve always had a fondness for bicycles and, more specifically, *riding* bicycles. So, as is probably common for anyone who is fond of something, I’ve spent years exploring it from as many angles as possible. In the process, I’ve loved studying bicycles in motion, along with collecting artistic and philosophical expressions that center the act of getting around on two wheels under your own power.
One of the most compelling parts of this gem of a book are Adam Thompson’s immaculate line drawings that capture the artfulness, and beautiful simplicity, at the heart of a bicycle ride—their white space pulls you in and invites you to imagine the landscape and circumstances around them.
Bicycles, and the paths they forge, take many shapes, but in the hands of Fattaruso and Thompson those shapes take center stage, and the essence of bicycling shines.
It’s a lovely interlude that always makes me nostalgic for riding a single speed on a rural road at the height of summer.
Somewhere between prose poem and sacred incantation lies Bicycle. In spare, comically surreal and beautiful prose, Paul Fattaruso does for bicycles what Richard Brautigan did for trout—he elevates them to the status of an idol. An intimate, inventive, and vibrant book.
Paul Fattaruso is the author of Travel in the Mouth of the Wolf. His work has appeared in Volt, Jubilat, Fence, Black Warrior Review, Another Chicago Magazine, The Tiny, and others. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife Kristin and his son Max. He rides a silver bicycle.
I’m a Minnesota-based children’s writer focusing on a mix of books for kids ages baby to teen. I love writing stories as well as nonfiction books focused on Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). After more than 25 years spent writing for a young audience, I started thinking about how I may be old but don’t necessarily feel old. An image came to mind: a rusty, dusty old tricycle. How might “Trike” feel if a happy, snappy new bike were to appear in the garage? Bike & Trike is the story that arose, one about old vs. new and a daring challenge to determine which bike will be the winner on wheels.
Learning to ride a bike is no easy feat, so it helps when your encouraging dad is along for the inaugural ride.
This warm story of father-daughter bonding celebrates a bike-riding milestone and the feeling of freedom that comes from an afternoon spent outside on wheels. The story is lyrical and upbeat, with a whiff of nostalgia.
Learning to ride is no easy feat! But with a little courage, a guiding hand from her dad, and an enthusiastic bark from her pup, one brave girl quickly learns the freedom that comes from an afternoon spent outside on a bike.
Experience the fear, the anticipation, and the delight of achieving the ultimate milestone in this energetic, warm story that celebrates the precious bond between parent and child.
Years ago, as I began teaching kids yoga, I noticed a lack of quality yoga-inspired children’s books. So, I took matters into my own hands and published my first book, The ABCs of Yoga for Kids, filling a void and sparking a series published in five languages. This success led to my Little Mouse Adventures series, blending storytelling with yoga and life skills. I believe in subtly imparting positive messages through playful storytelling, weaving in lessons along the way. My hope is young readers not only enjoy my stories but develop a lasting love for yoga and valuable life skills, just like the impact stories had on my own children.
Father does not always know best when it comes to the Berenstain Bears!
Little Bear is very excited to ride his new bike in this classic Berenstain Bears story, but first, Papa Bear wants to show him the ropes. Unfortunately for Little Bear (but fortunately for the reader), Papa Bear is more concerned with showing off, resulting in slapstick, disastrous results.
At the end of the story, Papa Bear tries to save face by claiming that he was showing Little Bear what not to do, a situation that will make you smile thinking about the stubborn members of your family!
The Bike Lesson is a perfect story for beginning readers, who will delight in spotting the dangers of the road before Father Bear does. And beginning bicylists will want to find out whether Small Bear will get a chance to read his new bike!
The Berenstain Bears are back with another hair-brained adventure, this time when Father Bear tries to teach Small Bear how to ride a bicycle. It looks like Father Bear might need to take note of the lessons himself!
Beginner Books have been designed to appeal directly to children through the use of humour, rhyme and bright…
I’m a Minnesota-based children’s writer focusing on a mix of books for kids ages baby to teen. I love writing stories as well as nonfiction books focused on Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). After more than 25 years spent writing for a young audience, I started thinking about how I may be old but don’t necessarily feel old. An image came to mind: a rusty, dusty old tricycle. How might “Trike” feel if a happy, snappy new bike were to appear in the garage? Bike & Trike is the story that arose, one about old vs. new and a daring challenge to determine which bike will be the winner on wheels.
Kayla has outgrown her three-wheeled “pink pony”—her tricycle—but is nervous about making the switch to a two-wheeled big-kid bike.
When she tries her new ride, Wild Blue, she is thrown again and again. Bumps... bruises... falls. They’re all part of learning to ride—so is perseverance! The story explores how the transition from training wheels or trikes is made better by using one’s imagination. Tender, colorful illustrations help the story come alive.
In a charming take on a milestone moment, a young girl summons a cowpoke's courage to tame her intimidating new bicycle.
Kayla loves riding her pink pony, a three-wheeled bike, up and down the street, day after day. But then Daddy announces that it's time for a big-kid bike, one with just two wheels. At the store, Kayla selects her mount, but when she tries to ride it, she is thrown-again and again. Can she tame this intimidating set of wheels? Or is the new blue bike just too wild? Tender and relatable, Wild Blue captures the emotions of moving…
My perspective as a parent, grandparent, and teacher has changed since I’ve read Mindset. I only wish I had heard about this book sooner. After I read Mindset, I felt like I had discovered the secret sauce for learning. As a teacher, I was always searching for new ways to motivate my students. I adopted innovative strategies and new trends that were engaging. As a result, I was named Teacher of the Year in my school district. Because Dweck’s messages about how the brain learns, the value of mistakes, and perseverance are key to improving a child’s achievement, I annually present this topic at both teacher conferences and parent meetings.
The first two words of this book’s title “Everyone Can” got my attention. And as I flipped through the pages, I was really drawn to its brightly painted illustrations that reminded me so much of modern artwork.
This book is by a two-time Caldecott Medalist and was a Junior Library Guild Selection winner. Its theme is very relatable, for I myself endured the same challenges that many face when learning to ride a bike. The story includes training wheels, holding on, letting go, and of course, falling. (However, I sure don’t remember having the benefit of training wheels.)
There are lots of ups and downs in the story with encouraging words that can propel any child through their many attempts. Perhaps you can predict how this story ends.
“[Raschka's] marvelous sequences, fluid style, and emotional intelligence capture all of the momentum and exhilaration of this glorious accomplishment,” raves School Library Journal in a starred review.
Learning to ride a bike is one of the most important milestones of childhood, and no one captures the emotional ups and downs of the experience better than Chris Raschka, who won the 2012 Caldecott Medal for A Ball for Daisy. In this simple yet emotionally rich "guide," a father takes his daughter through all the steps in the process—from choosing the perfect bicycle to that triumphant first successful ride. Using very few…
As a cyclist from a young age (thanks to the encouragement and engineering of my dad—he literally welded one of my first bikes together from the carcass of another kid’s bike that was run over by a car in his driveway on accident), I’ve always had a fondness for bicycles and, more specifically, *riding* bicycles. So, as is probably common for anyone who is fond of something, I’ve spent years exploring it from as many angles as possible. In the process, I’ve loved studying bicycles in motion, along with collecting artistic and philosophical expressions that center the act of getting around on two wheels under your own power.
For the history-curious cyclists among us, I submit for your consideration David V. Herlihy’s excellently-researched and well-told history of the two-wheeled machine we love so much.
From its beginnings as a literal “bone shaker” (an iron frame on wooden wheels), to the impossibly-light machines of the 20th and 21st centuries, Herlihy’s tale of cycling commerce, commuting, and competition over time and across the world is as enlightening as it is entertaining.
I’ve turned to it again and again for its historical perspective (and its great photos).
The first comprehensive history of the bicycle-lavishly illustrated with images spanning two centuries
During the nineteenth century, the bicycle evoked an exciting new world in which even a poor person could travel afar and at will. But was the "mechanical horse" truly destined to usher in a new era of road travel or would it remain merely a plaything for dandies and schoolboys? In Bicycle: The History (named by Outside magazine as the #1 book on bicycles), David Herlihy recounts the saga of this far-reaching invention and the passions it aroused. The pioneer racer James Moore insisted the bicycle would…
I write books to make sense of the world — this gloriously weird, sometimes heartbreaking, marvelous place we call home. Years ago, while visiting a museum in St. Louis, I heard a woman give a talk on charlatans (people who intentionally deceive others for their personal gain). It sparked a number of questions in me: Why do we believe the things that we do? What might we be willing to try to change our circumstances? Exploring these ideas was the starting point for my book, Miraculous, and its mysterious stranger, Dr. Kingsbury. I hope the stories you read in these pages fill you wonder as they did me.
Thirteen-year-old Natalie Minks loves to tinker and is fascinated when a traveling show comes to town with a mysterious contraption hidden under a tarp. But something is wrong with the show and its healer, Jake Limberleg. Natalie realizes for the sake of her town, she is the one who must discover the truth and finally set things right.
Like my book, Miraculous, The Boneshaker is centered on a traveling medicine show. The story is mysterious and atmospheric — two of my favorite things. I loved how the town’s past informed its present. Most of all, I loved Natalie’s bravery.
Thirteen-year-old Natalie Minks loves machines, particularly automata—self-operating mechanical devices, usually powered by clockwork. When Jake Limberleg and his traveling medicine show arrive in her small Missouri town with a mysterious vehicle under a tarp and an uncanny ability to make Natalie’s half-built automaton move, she feels in her gut that something about this caravan of healers is a bit off. Her uneasiness leads her to investigate the intricate maze of the medicine show, where she discovers a horrible truth and realizes that only she has the power to set things right.
Set in 1914, The Boneshaker is a gripping, richly…
Besides creating inventive best friends Melia and Jo, Jennifer Oxley and Billy Aronson created problem-solving best friends Peg and Cat, stars of Peg + Cat picture books and the PBS TV series which airs around the world. While creating those sets of best friends Jen and Billy became best friends themselves, brainstorming together, learning together, singing and dancing together, sharing pizza, inspiring and supporting each other, and laughing together many times a day. So yeah, they know a lot about best friends.
In Chirri and Chirra, Japanese author and artist Kaya Doi captures the magic of best friendship with gorgeous colored pencil illustrations and a dream-like tale. When twins Chirri and Chirra head off into the woods for a bike ride they find themselves in a wonderland that blends the strangeness of Lewis Caroll with the sweetness of Goodnight Moon. Along the way they stop to enjoy chestnut coffee, clover blossom tea and jelly sandwiches, all served by forest animals. They swim in a lake, nap under a tree, and ride on to a cozy hotel just in time for a forest animal concert that lights up the night of the girls’ perfect day.
The first book in a completely charming series by a well-known Japanese author and illustrator, Chirri & Chirra introduces two girl characters who go on wonderful adventures together through the natural world. Vibrant, lively, and astonishingly sweet in a pure, unsentimental way, these pages present us with relatable children, small animals, lots of food, atmosphere, and many mysteries.
Born in Tokyo, Japan, Kaya Doi graduated with a degree in design from Tokyo Zokei University. She got her start in picture books by attending the Atosaki Juku Workshop, held at a Tokyo bookshop specializing in picture books. Since then she has…
I’m pretty sure I’m about to die in space. And I just turned twelve and a half.
Blast off with the four winners of the StellarKid Project on a trip to the International Space Station and then to the Gateway outpost orbiting the Moon! It’s a dream come true until…
I’m a Minnesota-based children’s writer focusing on a mix of books for kids ages baby to teen. I love writing stories as well as nonfiction books focused on Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). After more than 25 years spent writing for a young audience, I started thinking about how I may be old but don’t necessarily feel old. An image came to mind: a rusty, dusty old tricycle. How might “Trike” feel if a happy, snappy new bike were to appear in the garage? Bike & Trike is the story that arose, one about old vs. new and a daring challenge to determine which bike will be the winner on wheels.
In a village at the end of a no-go desert, siblings need to make their own fun. Need a bike? Build your own from scratch!
With a milk pot, old flour sack, and other everyday items, a bike is born—one that can bumpety-bump over the hot sand hills. Sound-words, rhythmic text, and a theme of perseverance make this a stand-out story. Street artist Van Thanh Rudd created illustrations that capture the rough-and-tumble world and its lively characters.
Winner of the Boston Globe-Horn Book Picture Book Award 2019
Winner of the Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Crichton Award for Debut Illustrator 2017Selected as a CBCA Honour Picture Book 2017Shortlisted for PATRICIA WRIGHTSON PRIZE FOR CHILDREN'S LITERATURE 2018'Beautifully written and incredibly powerful.' Books + Publishing'this book is just what many of us need right now' - starred Kirkus ReviewWhen you live in a village at the edge of the No-Go Desert, you need to make your own fun. That's when you and your brothers get inventive and build a bike from scratch, using…
