Weekend Reviews (I)

Elizabeth Ward reviews "four fabulous picture books for fall" in the Washington Post. They include:

• A Drive in the Country, by Michael J. Rosen (NB: The Washington Post column has an error--The author is Michael J. Rosen, not Michael Rosen.)
• Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose: The Story of a Painting, by Hugh Brewster
• Cowboy and Octopus, by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith
• Very Hairy Bear, by Alice Schertle

Amanda Craig reviews Nick Hornby's Slam and K. M. Peyton's Minna's Quest for the Times.

Also in the Times, Amanda Craig lists her favorite "troubled teens" books.

Nicolette Jones reviews Tamburlaine's Elephants, by Geraldine McCaughrean, for the Times.

Mary Harris Russell reviews six new books for the Chicago Tribune. They include:

• Llama Llama Mad at Mama, by Anna Dewdney
• Meet Julie, by Megan McDonald
• Soupy Saturdays With the Pain and the Great One, by Judy Blume, illustrated by James Stevenson
• Spud, by John van de Ruit
• Jabberwocky, by Lewis Carroll, illustrations by Christopher Myers
• The Super Soybean, by Raymond Bial

Celebrity authors are not just popular in the U.S.! The Telegraph talks British comedian Harry Hill and his new children's book, The Further Adventures of the Queen Mum.

In this Saturday's "not-a-review" category: the German language is being changed by Harry Potter (Guardian).