“Corn grows up. Carrots grow down. Cucumbers climb around and around.” This delightful book takes kids on a tour of a backyard garden where every seed knows which way to go in order to grow. Repetition and rhyme accompany pages bursting with color to make this a toddler favorite.

If kids have to eat their vegetables before they get dessert, just imagine what Little Pea has to eat! Little Pea’s parents insist he finish all of his candy before he gets his favorite treat: spinach. Everyone loves a hap-pea ending!

Nutritionist Susan McQuillan blends a Sesame Street flair with healthy family fare. Join the Cookie Monster as he creates simple meals and presents them in silly ways. Big Bird’s Spaghetti Pie, anyone?

his is more than your average cookbook; it has a handbook on how to become a private eye, plus recipes that all contain bugs (substitutions OK). Fourth-grade detective Chet Gecko teaches you how to grill a suspect and then bake Maggot Macaroni Cakes. “No case too small, no snack too big.”

Although all the recipes we tested were delicious, the cookie design ideas were even better. This is a fun and easy craft-meets-cookie guide. Make a globe, solar system, sunglasses and even a pizza cookie, as well as edible puzzles and mix-and-match faces. The recipes are clear and easy, and the photographs of the treats will inspire cookie artists to let their imaginations run wild.

This British teen follows his first book (Cooking Up a Storm) with this fast and fun cookbook organized by preparation time, ranging from 5 to 30 minutes. Stern, 15, knows that teen schedules are tight, but he creates healthy meals in record time. Somehow, cooking is cooler with Stern.

This no-nonsense guide is a wonderful tool for parents of younger children who may need to lose weight, and it is also handy for any parent trying to keep the whole family well and active. Psychologist Dr. Bartell offers a positive perspective that will help parents make a realistic, healthy plan for either slimming down or staying healthy as a household. Dr. Bartell also wrote Dr. Susan’s Girls-Only Weight Loss Guide for teenage girls.