Root Beer and Banana — Sarah Sullivan

Sarah Sullivan's lyrical text and Greg Shed's warm, nostalgic illustrations lend a southern flavor to this gentle tale of friendship and small kindnesses.

Mister Mac's ceiling fan stirs the heat
while the ice-cream freezer
hums its steady tune.

Cold air hits my face
when I slide the door open.

It's summer on the river, hot enough to melt the tar on the roof, and Squirt is happy to be at Mister Mac's General Store, where her grandfather is treating her to a cold, refreshing Popsicle. Her only dilemma is what flavor to choose -- until she meets a girl named Miracle, with her brightly patched dress, who's a nickel shy of buying her own frozen treat. With some quiet help from Granddaddy, Squirt makes just the right choice and ends up with something even better than TWO Popsicles: a new friend.