Leo and...Leo y...
(2023) Barranca Press
by Susan L. Roth

Little Doves
Pequeñas tórtolas
(2021) Barranca Press
by Susan L. Roth

Butterfly for a King
Saving Hawaiis Kamehameha Butterflies
(2021) Lee & Low Books
by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore

AWARDS

• Best Children's Books of the Year, Bank Street College of Education
• Best of the Best Books, Chicago Public Library
• Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction, Recommended Title, National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE)
• Starred Review, Booklist
• Starred Review, School Library Journal

"The Sibert Medal–winning creators of Parrots over Puerto Rico (2013) join forces to tell another moving story of conservation, this time about Hawaii’s Kamehameha butterfly. They truly start at the beginning, taking readers back to the island chain’s volcanic birth and then zipping forward to the early nineteenth century, when King Kamehameha united the Hawaiian islands under his rule. This is how Hawaii’s endemic black, orange, and white butterfly came to be named Kamehameha. The book now leaps to 2009, when six fifth-graders asked local lawmakers to make the Kamehameha butterfly, the population of which was dwindling, Hawaii’s state insect.The children were successful, and the state government went on to start the Pulelehua (Butterfly)Project with the help of the University of Hawaii and a lot of citizen scientists. All this comes to life in Roth’s paper collages, which beautifully mix texture and color, as she creates everything from delicate butterfly wings to an opalescent comet’s tail.... "
-starred review, Booklist

"Conservation, citizen science, and a perennially popular juvenile nonfiction topic come together in this beautifully illustrated title about Hawai‘i’s Kamehameha butterflies. The narrative begins with the formation of the Hawaiian islands and introduces Kamehameha as the king who unified the islands under his leadership. He also had a butterfly named for him. In 2009, six fifth-grade students campaigned to get the Kamehameha butterfly named as Hawai‘i’s official state insect in an effort to raise awareness of the population’s decline.... Roth’s intricate and appealing collages elevate the title, opening strongly on an exploding volcano and making each page turn an anticipatory delight. An afterword, illustrator’s note, acknowledgments, sources, and photograph credits are included. VERDICT A triumph; highly recommended for all libraries."
-starred review, School Library Journal

Dear Alfred’s Pancreas
Based on a True Story of a Family Learning to Live with Type I Diabetes
(2019) Great Dog Literary
by Susan L. Roth and Jill Shuldiner

Birds of a Feather: Bowerbirds and Me
(2019) Neal Porter Books Holiday House
by Susan L. Roth

AWARDS

• A Bank Street Best Book of the Year - Outstanding Merit
• Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews
• Starred Review, Booklist
• Starred Review, School Library Journal

"Blending memoir and nonfiction with deep ruminations on what constitutes an artist, Roth presents parallels between her life as an illustrator and the life of an Australian bowerbird. . . . introspective readers will be satisfied by the reflective nature of the text and the behind-the-scenes look at dual artistic processes. Roth persuasively argues that "all artists…seek praise," and this ambitious hybrid demands to be seen."
-starred review, Kirkus Reviews

Malala Yousafzai: Warrior with Words
(2019) Lee & Low Books
by Karen Abouraya
collages by Susan L. Roth

AWARDS

• Best Children's Books of the Year, Bank Street College of Education
• Eureka! Award, California Reading Association
• Starred Review, School Library Journal

"The story of Malala Yousafzai is a powerful one: she is a living testament to personal strength and the value of education. The young human rights advocate is a true warrior with words, and this up-to-date biography introduces children to her story. For a generation of digital natives, a young woman who expresses herself and elicits change through a blog is both relatable and inspirational. Interspersed with quotes from Yousafzai, the text highlights the important events in her life. From the beginning of her blog until the day of the Taliban’s attempt to assassinate her, and onward through her recovery and up to present day, the thread that weaves the story together is her unwavering support of the right each child has to an education. Roth’s illustrations are composed of beautiful fabric-and-paper collages. There are gorgeous, bright colors throughout, but the Taliban and events involving them are depicted in muted tones of black and gray. The informational pages at the end of the book are not to be missed. Children can learn more about Pakistan, the Taliban, and The Malala Fund. There is even a section that encourages young readers to take action and provides information on how to do so. VERDICT Available in both English and Spanish, this contemporary biography is excellent for conversations about the power of words, resilience, and the ability of one person to inspire meaningful change."
-starred review, School Library Journal

Malala Yousafzai: Warrior with Words
(2014) StarWalk Kids Media
by Karen Abouraya
collages by Susan L. Roth (under pen name, L.C. Wheatley)

Every Month Is a New Year: Celebrations Around the World
(2018) Lee & Low Books
by Marilyn Singer
collages by Susan L. Roth

"This celebration of new year celebrations around the world is itself worth celebrating. Readers must turn the book on its side to enjoy the wall-calendar dimensions of each spread, all of which feature a short, gently-rhyming poem told from an individual child’s point of view about commemorations from Times Square to Chile, China, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Jordan, New Zealand, Scotland, Spain, and Thailand. They’re organized chronologically across the Gregorian calendar, as a piece about Wep Ronpet (as marked in Ancient Egypt and now some U.S. communities) explains: “Everyone believes in a different beginning. / The Year may start for me, for you, anew in January, April, May, / or in some other month, on some other day. . . . But what is true and what is clear is that all of us hope for a luminous year.” The collage illustrations using paper sourced from across the globe are spectacular, with culturally distinctive elements yet a consistent style, and the back matter is stellar and solid, with additional information, pronunciations, a map, and thorough source notes. This complete package is an illuminating and respectful appreciation of both our global uniqueness and our commonality."
-starred review, Booklist

Playing with Osito | Jouer avec Osito
Bilingual English and French
(2021) Barranca Press
by Lisa Maria Burgess
collages by Susan L. Roth

Playing with Osito | Jugando con Baby Bear
Bilingual English and Spanish
(2018) Barranca Press
by Lisa Maria Burgess
collages by Susan L. Roth

"Lovely, fun bilingual story about a little girl's adventures with Osito (baby bear) trying to devise a good plan to keep Osito warm. Captivating illustrations that are sure to engage a child's attention. Especially good for children who speak Spanish and/or English or if they are learning either language. A bonus nature information page."

Babies Can’t Eat Kimchee!
(20014) StarWalk Kids Media
(20018) Dog House Productions
written and illustrated with Nancy Patz

Babies Can’t Eat Kimchee!
(2007) Bloomsbury Publishing
written and illustrated with Nancy Patz

“Bold and brilliant collage, ink and pastel illustrations expressively capture the big sister's emerging attachment for her little sister. Perfect for families introducing new babies to older siblings.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“[The] Korean-American perspective and mixed-media collage illustrations set the title apart... This book is a welcome addition to an overpopulated field.”
- School Library Journal

iSee You Later, Amigo!:
an American border tale
(2017) Barranca Press
by Peter Laufer
collages by Susan L. Roth

"This delightful and audacious book will bring much joy to those who speak the lengua de la comunidad, and for those captivated by it! Wonderfully illustrated, the story speaks from the everyday experiencias auténticas of generations growing up as hablantes bilingües as well as the ways they inhabit and understand their heritage and their bicultural world. Un triunfo that touches los corazones of its readers, chicos y grandes!"
- Professor Claudia Holguín, Director of the University of Oregon Spanish as a Heritage Language Program.

“Bright collage art using a wealth of textured, patterned papers and lace bring this traditional holiday song to life.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“The art… shines with holiday cheer.”
- Booklist

“Lovely colors and the appealing tune make this a good holiday choice.”
- School Library Journal

Prairie Dog Song
Saving North America’s Grasslands
(2016) Lee & Low Books
by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore
collages by Susan L. Roth

"Roth and Trumbore, the team behind Parrots Over Puerto Rico and The Mangrove Tree, adapt the song “And the Green Grass Grew All Around” in an inspiring environmental comeback story. Early spreads introduce the prairie dogs, owls, bison, and eagles that made their home in the prairies of northern Mexico, until ranchers and farmers turned the grasslands to desert (“And over time/ Mesquite moved in,/ With the longest roots/ That you ever did see”). As locals attempt to restore the grasslands, supplemental paragraphs offer extensive information about the process and animals (as does a substantial afterword). Roth’s meticulously crafted collages create sweeping, gorgeously detailed panoramas of a delicate landscape in flux."
-starred review, Publishers Weekly

Princess at the Ball
(2014) StarWalk Kids Media
by Susan L. Roth
collages by Susan L. Roth

"Princess and her sidekick, a fluffy white cat, conspire to be allowed to stay up for a grownup party."
- StarWalk Kids Media

Princess
(2012) StarWalk Kids Media
by Susan L. Roth

“The visually arresting elements of this glossy plum keep excellent company with an understated comic text. When her mother attempts to wake her for school, a sleepy child muses about what life might be like if she were a princess.… Each of the daydream’s episodes is augmented by a full spread of well-designed, highly textured collage in sparkling colors that fairly spin off the page... Fit for a princess.”
- Publishers Weekly

Princess
(1993) Hyperion

“The visually arresting elements of this glossy plum keep excellent company with an understated comic text. When her mother attempts to wake her for school, a sleepy child muses about what life might be like if she were a princess.… Each of the daydream’s episodes is augmented by a full spread of well-designed, highly textured collage in sparkling colors that fairly spin off the page... Fit for a princess.”
- Publishers Weekly

Sam and Leo and Leo and Sam
(2013) StarWalk Kids Media
by Ruth Phang
collages by Susan L. Roth
A Read and Listen Book™

"This tender picture book explores two concepts for preschoolers—the parts of our bodies and the names of our senses. In a unique twist, these concepts are presented to preschoolers through the lens of friendship, as best friends Leo and Sam playfully describe what they each like best about the other."
- StarWalk Kids Media

Between the Covers
(2013) StarWalk Kids Media
by Susan L. Roth
collages by Susan L. Roth
A Read and Listen Book™

"A little girl travels the Universe through her love of reading before its time to turn out the lights. Some day, when she's as big as Paul Bunyan, she will write books of her own!"
- StarWalk Kids Media

Parrots Over Puerto Rico
(2013) Lee & Low Books Inc. New York
by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore
collages by Susan L. Roth

AWARDS

• Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal, American Library Association
• Starred Review, The Horn Book Magazine
• Starred Review, Booklist
• Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews
• Starred Review, Publishers Weekly
• 2013 Nerdy Book Award, Nerdy Book Club
• Starred Review, School Library Journal
• Original Art 2013, Society of Illustrators
• Books for Youth Editors' Choice 2013, Booklist
• Junior Library Guild Selection
• Lasting Connection Title, Book Links
• Diverse and Impressive Picture Books of 2013, IRA Reading Today Online
• Choices, Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
• Teacher's Choices Reading List, IRA
• Riverby Award, John Burroughs Association
• Best Books for Children and Young Adults, Bank Street Books
• Américas Book Award
  Consortium of Latin American Studies Program (CLASP)
• Orbis Pictus Award Honor Book, National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE)

"Few nonfiction picture books attempt this level of ambition, and even fewer succeed. . . . Roth's stunning artwork—fluttery, textural collages of fabric and paper with a three-dimensional quality—compliment the high-interest narrative and are arranged vertically across dual pages to make the most of the tall trees and the related human actions taking place below. A triumphant reminder of the inescapable connection between people's actions and the animals in the wild."
-starred review, Booklist

Hands Around the Library
Protecting Egypt's Treasured Books
(2012) Dial Books for Young Readers
by Susan L. Roth and Karen Leggett Abouraya
collages by Susan L. Roth

AWARDS

• 2013 Arab American Book Award
• Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books of 2013 (Nine to Twelve)
• 2013 Notable Social Studies Trade Books (National Council for the Social Studies and Children's Book Council)
• 2013 Notable Books for a Global Society (International Reading Association)
• 2013 Best Books for Young Children by the Children's Africana Book Awards Committee
• 2013 NCTE Orbis Pictus Nonfiction Award Recommended List
• 2013 Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices (CCBC - University of Wisconsin)

"Freedom and libraries: an essential combination. During the tumultuous days of the Arab Spring when Egyptians marched to bring down their government, youthful demonstrators and library staff stood together to protect the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, contemporary counterpart to the Great Library of Alexandria, from vandalism. Roth’s exuberant collages capture these heady moments, blending photos, papers and fabrics to bring the people’s positive actions and the building’s intriguing facade together in a celebration of patriotism and libraries. The co-authors personalize the historical events by using Shaimaa Saad, a former children’s librarian, as the narrator. The text begins traditionally but quickly changes to indicate that this is a contemporary story: “Once upon a time, / not a long time ago, / many people in Egypt / were sad and sometimes angry, / because they were not free to speak, / or vote as they wished, or gather in groups.” Young people one by one join Dr. Ismail Serageldin, the library’s director, in a human chain around the building and unfurl a giant Egyptian flag on its steps (also shown in photographs at the end) with palpable ebullience. Extensive and accessible backmatter includes information about the ancient and modern libraries, the January 25, 2011, Revolution, an author’s note, resources, protest-sign translations and graphic motifs. A stunning visual recreation of a recent historical event."
-starred review, Kirkus Reviews

Dream Something Big
The Story of the Watts Towers
(2011) Dial Books for Young Readers
by Dianna Hutts Aston
collages by Susan L. Roth

"This book’s beautiful collages give children a real sense of the project step- by- step along its way to completion. An activity to create one’s own Watts Tower offers interaction with the story that gives children not only the history of the Watts Towers, but, more importantly, the sharing of the finding of inspiration, and of the perseverance to follow one’s dream, despite the initial opinions of others."
- City Book Rewiew

Leo Stories, Book one - Read Aloud Edition
(2011) StarWalk Kids Media
by Susan L. Roth
Available formats: Google Play Books, Kindle

"This book contains a pair of charming stories (Leo's Hat and Leo's Airplane) about the power of play and imagination in helping young children to find the fun in doing what is good for them. It is a sunny day, and Mama and Leo are going to the park. Or they will, if Mama can convince Leo to wear his sunhat!"

The Mangrove Tree
Planting Trees to Feed Families
(2011) Lee & Low Books
by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore
collages by Susan L. Roth
(also available in Korean, Japanese, and Spanish)

• 2011 Growing Good Kids Award
• Eureka! Award, 2012 Gold Winner
• ALA Notable Children's Book
• Jane Addams Children's Book Award
• Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction, Honor Book
• Notable Children's Books, Smithsonian Magazine
• Green Earth Book Award
• Best Children's Books of the Year, Outstanding Title
• Notable Books for a Global Society
• "Choices" Award

"This moving depiction of ecological innovation centers on a project spearheaded by Dr. Gordon Sato to plant mangrove trees, which grow easily in salt water, in the village of Hargigo in the impoverished African nation of Eritrea. Graceful prose alternates with cumulative verse to relay the benefits that the trees provided for the community: "These are the fishermen/ Who catch the fish/ That swim in the roots,/ Of the mangrove trees." Resembling papier-mâché, Roth's textural mixed-media collages become increasingly lively as the new ecosystem flourishes. An extensive afterword, containing many photographs of Sato and the people of Hargigo, brings their hopeful story into sharp focus. Ages 6–11."
- starred review, Publishers Weekly

Listen to the Wind
The Story of Dr. Greg and Three Cups of Tea
(2009) Dial Books for Young Readers
by Greg Mortenson and Susan L. Roth
collages by Susan L. Roth

• #1 New York Times bestseller, 52 weeks on the list

“Listen to the Wind” tells Mortenson’s story in the clear, succinct voices of the children of Korphe. Leaving out background and history, the picture-book version is nevertheless true to the spirit of Mortenson’s experience and mission. The minimal text is splendidly paired with Susan L. Roth’s textural, earth-toned collages, which evoke the roughness of the terrain and the primitive quality of life there. A community spirit pervades: on nearly every spread, we see the multitude of villagers (girls in colorful headscarves; dark-haired boys) who worked with Mortenson to build their school. “Our mothers carried water to mix the cement. . . . With our small fingers we wedged tiny slivers of stones into the cement to make the walls stronger.” The raw quality of the art is counterbalanced by a “Korphe Scrapbook” of color photos documenting the people and places, helping answer a child’s question: Is this true?"
- New York Times

" The remarkable account of [Greg Mortenson's] quest...is magnificently enhanced [in LISTEN TO THE WIND] by Roth’s colorful collages. As explained in an artist’s note, she incorporated fabric, bits of paper, and other fibers into the scenery in appreciation of the Balti people’s aesthetic use of scraps. “A Korphe Scrapbook” follows the story, displaying photographs of the events, the village’s inhabitants, and the librarian who helped to fill this school and the 57 more schools that have since been built in Pakistan and Afghanistan...This truly exceptional and moving title should not be missed."
- starred review, School Library Journal

" The [Listen to the Wind] narrative successfully compresses Mortenson’s story by focusing on the elements most important to children: the stranger’s appearance, the drama of the construction, the happy conclusion. Colorful fabric, cut-paper, and even computer-chip collages portray the dramatic landscape and incredible undertaking. Children will also enjoy an appended scrapbook of photographs, maps, and additional information."
- starred review, Booklist

"Susan Roth’s intricately constructed collage-illustrations bring alive the cold immensity of the mountains, the warm charm of the Korphe children, and the cheerfulness of the apricot orchards. There is also a lovely synchronicity at work here that binds the story to the collage medium. As Roth explains in the book’s afterword, the women in Korphe routinely use bits of things that foreign climbers leave behind to make all sorts of things, and Roth has done the same, gathering scraps of paper and cloth to make something extraordinarily beautiful."
- PaperTigers

"[Susan L. Roth's] work has a welcoming, tactile dimension—readers would want to touch the fabric headscarves, for example. A detailed scrapbook featuring photos from Three Cups of Tea and an artist's note firmly ground the book in fact."
- Publishers Weekly

Do Re Mi
If You Can Read Music, Thank Guido D'Arezzo
(2006) Houghton Mifflin
(in collaboration with Angelo Mafucci)
(also available in Korean)

“Roth's ingenious and intricate illustrations, made of papers "from all over the world," constitute a unique vocabulary themselves. A sublime blend of education and entertainment.
- Kirkus Reviews

“The words are basic, lyrical, and inspiring…an appealing, accessible, and thought-provoking introduction to a rarely covered subject. A bibliography and an author's note conclude the volume.”
- Booklist

“Roth's collages, populated by doll-like figures, quickly shoo away any misgivings that music history could be a bore, and make a marvelous counterpoint for her carefully researched prose.”
- Publishers Weekly

Great Big Guinea Pigs
(2006) Bloomsbury Children’s Books

• A Junior Library Guild Selection

“Thanks to the snappy dialogue, this is catalogued as fiction, but it is full of factual information…Roth produces her typically super collage art made of torn papers. She manages to make her guinea pigs look equally adorable (in the present) and ferocious (in the past.)”
- starred review, Booklist

“Fun to read and visually engaging, the book also presents fascinating information based on recent scientific discoveries. . . . The idea of introducing prehistoric mammals within a bedtime tale is original and highly successful.” - School Library Journal

“Choice of the familiar household pet to teach a little science, the delightful art and the not-so-unusual bedtime stall, make this enormously attractive to young readers.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“Super collage art.”
- Booklist

Hard Hat Area
(2004) Bloomsbury Children’s Books

• A Children's Book-of-the-month Club Selection
• A Bank Street College Best Children’s Book of the Year
• A Children’s Book Council notable Social Studies Trade Book

“Combine the aesthetics of accomplished collagist Roth with a day-in-the-life tale of a female ironworker apprentice, and the result is a standout construction book... By creating barebones characterizations of cut-paper and cloth... Roth keeps the focus on the dramatic rise of the building and beautifully conveys what it feels like to move among the criss-crossing girders high above the city streets (represented in photomontage with images from actual Manhattan work sites). She brings alive the ironworkers' sense of community, and how they embrace anyone willing to start at the bottom and work their way up-make that way, way up.”
- starred review, Publishers Weekly

“Kids who are intrigued by construction sites and equipment will find this unusually structured book a solid hit... Roth's stunning collage illustrations include real denim and cork for the worker's clothes and intriguing montages of city buildings spread out far below the workers.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“Roth's stunning collages, overlaid on a photomontage of the New York skyline, showcase the various workers, their jobs, and their equipment in situ; clear explanatory notes describe the work and responsibilities for each person involved in the construction. This co-existence of story narrative and enumeration of factual information allows readers two entries into the subject. While each element can stand alone, in combination they provide a rich reading experience.”
- The Horn Book

My Love for You All Year Round
(2003) Dial

“Multilayered cut-paper collages are filled with colorful details. The warm hues perfectly match the story’s sentiment. A gentle book for one-on-one snuggling, as well as a wonderful way to learn about the months and the vocabulary of emotions.”
- School Library Journal

“Roth manipulates her delicate, beautifully shaded papers in ways that appeal to both the adult eye and the child's sensibility.”
- Booklist

“The comforting text, combined with the stunning collages, provides a compelling exploration of the year and its seasons for young readers.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“Susan Roth has illustrated the text (selected from Whitman’s well-known Leaves of Grass) with stunning collages that show a cat family appreciating the surrounding world. Roth’s visual interpretations of certain lines can be both touching and gently humorous.”
- Washington Parent

“Roth emphasizes the pieced-together, free-verse structure of the poem through her bright collage illustrations. This uplifting presentation can bring Whitman's poem to life for young audiences.”
- School Library Journal

It's a Dog's New York
(2001) National Geographic Society

“...Susan L. Roth's background illustrations, collages of cut-up photographs of New York, are marvelous. They capture the jangling clatter, the pace, the images and colors of the place in a way that will touch the heart of anyone who loves it.”
- The New York Times Book Review

“It’s a tale (tail?) that’s been told before - country dog meets city dog - but this version is more like Tony Soprano meets Lassie... Parents give it a thumbs-up.”
- New York Magazine

Happy Birthday Mr. Kang
(2001) National Geographic Society

• Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young Readers
• National Council for the Social Studies
• Art Directors Club of Metropolitan Washington Certificate of Merit

“Roth's sumptuous, sophisticated collages fittingly chronicle this affecting tale of a Chinese-American retiree and his grandson... This poignant volume honors the value of one's native heritage while paying homage to America's great diversity.”
- starred review, Publishers Weekly

“At his 70th birthday party Mr. Kang, who came from China to New York 43 years earlier, told his three wishes. He wanted to read the newspaper [The New York Times] every day, paint poems and have a hua mei, a pet bird, that he can take to Sara Delano Roosevelt Park in Chinatown every Sunday. This endearing book with handsome collage illustrations tells just how he achieved his heart’s desire.”
- The New York Times Book Review

“Roth...honors the memory of her Chinese uncle through her story, which is partially based on her uncle's immigrant experiences and his talents as a poet and calligrapher...Roth's elegant collage illustrations are a delight to peruse, incorporating paper-cut figures, rice papers, brocades, feathers, newspaper scraps, and photographs to create a dynamic flow of art. Text is place carefully within its own frame on top of one side of each exquisitely crafted two-page spread.”
- Kirkus Reviews

"For his seventieth birthday, Mr. Kang has three wishes: to read The New York Times, to paint poems, and to own a hua mei, a Chinese bird... [T]he inventive collage illustrations will draw children back into the quiet story, which offers glimpses of an artist, an immigrant's experience, and a close, intergenerational relationship."
- Booklist

"Roth's mixed-media collages are visually arresting... fanciful constructions of cut paper, photographs, silk brocades, Chinese restaurant menus, woven wooden slats, newspaper clippings and corrugated cardboard that coexist in vibrant harmony with bordered blocks of text in a bold font suggestive of hand lettering."
- The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Grandpa Blows His Penny Whistle Until the Angels Sing (2001) Barefoot Books

“Roth... pairs her long but simply told miracle tale with huge, stunning collages made from tissue, handmade papers, fabrics, and leaves... It's a heart-filling (not to mention eye-filling) episode that will leave few readers unmoved-and the art is astonishing .”
- starred review, Kirkus Review

“Roth’s straightforward words and collage images form an exquisite partnership that opens the door to this farm family’s heart... The artwork is unique and often stunning.”
- starred review, School Library Journal

Made in Mexico
(2000) National Geographic Society
written by Peter Laufer
Hecho en Mexico (Published simultaneously in Spanish)

• Lasting Connections; American Library Association
• Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People
• National Council for the Social Studies
• A National Parenting Publications Gold Award

“I learned to play guitar on an instrument made in Paracho, Mexico. This lovely book with its charming illustrations is a fitting tribute to the town and the culture that produces these fine-sounding instruments.”
- Linda Ronstadt

“Cut-paper collages and a custom-designed and hand-cut type vibrantly illustrate a text that melds Spanish idioms with readable English to produce a rhythmic introduction to a fascinating and little-known place.”
- School Library Journal

Night-Time Numbers
A Scary Counting Book
(1999) Barefoot Books

“What creepy-crawlies lurk in the dark? ...Vibrant collage illustrations in a wide variety of textures complement the short rhyming text, and culminate in a golden yellow scene showing an angel watching over the sleeping child, who, having named her fears, can now sleep soundly.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“Night-time can be a scary with suspected spooky creatures hiding in the darkness. Count from one ghoulish monster to ten chilling bats, and count them in the eerie darkness of night. ‘Who can you see in the backyard tonight? I can see one monster in the pale moonlight.’ Six sharks swim in the bathtub, seven spiders spin webs in the toy chest and eight ghosts haunt an ancient closet. Roth's cut paper collages bring a comforting visitor at the end to banish any night-time monsters.”
- Children's Literature

Cinnamon's Day Out
A Gerbil Adventure
(1998) Dial
(also available in Korean)

• A New York Public Library “100 Titles for Reading and Sharing”

“Illustrated with vivid and expressive collages composed of wood chips, cardboard, wallpaper, an assortment of fibers, and textured, handmade papers, this is the thoroughly charming tale of a gerbil's unexpected adventure outside his cage...Spare text, perfect pacing, innovative illustrations, and delightful tongue-in-cheek humor make this work on many levels.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“Cinnamon is a gerbil with a personality. He tells his friend Snowball about his big adventure outside their cage. He climbed a mountain (a stack of books), spied a wolf (a dog), found a pond (cat's water dish), and escaped from a tiger (housecat). The adventure is related visually from Cinnamon's perspective and Roth's cut paper collages and mixed media scenes are wonderful. The center spread with the big cat created out of corrugated paper is just wonderful. Little Cinnamon looks so real, you want to stroke his furry body. Young children will share in this daring outing by the brave little gerbil and will want it read to them more than once.”
- Children's Literature

• Boston Globe - Horn Book Awards Winner, Nonfiction
• A Junior Library Guild Selection.
• Best Books for Young Adults; American Library Association-YALSA
• Best Children's Books of the Year; Bank Street College of Education
• Booklist: Editors' Choice: Books for Youth; American Library Association
• Capitol Choices; The Capitol Choices Committee
• Fanfare Honor List; Horn Book
• Lasting Connections; American Library Association
• Notable Children's Trade Books in the Field of the Social Studies
• National Council for the Social Studies
• Smithsonian Magazine's Notable Books for Children
• Children's Books of Distinction; Riverbank Review
• Notable Books for Children; American Library Association-ALSC
• Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People
• National Council for the Social Studies
• Teachers' Choices; International Reading Association
• Georgia Children's Literature Awards
• Pennsylvania Young Readers' Choice Award
• Texas Lone Star Reading List
• Virginia’s Jefferson Cup Award Winner

“In this riveting autobiography, Baltimore janitor Leon Walter Tillage reflects on his life with all the vitality of a storyteller gathering his audience around him. He recalls his childhood as an African American sharecropper's son in 1940s North Carolina...Tillage's words describe a time, only a few short decades back, when Klansmen and Jim Crow laws ruled the South ... Roth's dramatic black-and-white collages pay homage to the power of Leon's story, a tale that does more in its gentle way to expose the horrors of racism than most works of fiction ever could.”
- starred review, Publishers Weekly

“The full strength of character of Leon Tillage and those he represents is revealed in the plain dignity of his words.”
- starred review, The Horn Book

“His voice is direct, the words are simple. There is no rhetoric, no commentary, no bitterness, just the facts of his personal story set against the segregation of the time.”
- starred review, Booklist

My Love For You
(1997) Dial
(also available bi-lingual:English/Spanish and Spanish)

• Adventuring with Books: A Booklist for Pre-K - Grade 6, 12th Edition
• National Council of Teachers of English

“The quantification of love is an inexhaustible subject. In this rodent romance, a little mouse confides and counts a love bigger than one bear, taller than two giraffes and so on, through ten kinds of large animals, and larger than all of them together. Charming, mostly pastel, collage illustrations.”
- The New York Times Book Review

“Roth creates charming collages that quietly - then thunderously - spell out the size, strength, durability, and expanse of the love one mouse has for another.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“A counting book with a nice surprise: a simple charm, a loving voice, and a subtext about racial harmony... Colorful, expressive cut-paper collages... add to the appeal of the book.”
- Booklist

White Crow
(1996) Harcourt, Brace
(written by Shirley Frederick)
(Educational supplement publication)

How the Sky Got Its Stars
(1996) Harcourt, Brace
(retold by Gail Tuchman)
(Educational supplement publication)

Brave Martha and the Dragon
(1996) Dial

“Collage has become an increasingly popular illustration medium for picture books, but Roth’s work is particularly fine. Paper and cloth cut into jaunty shapes create pictures of great liveliness and charm.”
- Booklist

“Ms. Roth’s fine storytelling brings this tale to life, giving it a fresh, contemporary feel.”
- The Washington Times

The Biggest Frog in Australia
(1996) Simon and Schuster

• An Aesop Accolade, American Folklore Society
• An American Booksellers Association Pick of the Lists
• Kaleidoscope, A Multicultural Booklist for Grades K-8, National Council of Teachers of English
• Aesop Prize Accolade
• A Kentucky Bluegrass Award

“This original tall tale, inspired by ‘Tiddalik the Flood-maker’ contains familiar motifs presented with fresh energy... Brilliantly colored cut-paper collages feature a multitude of textures, including fuzzy white paper that forms the kookaburra’s feathers and the koala’s ears, and marbleized paper to depict water.”
- starred review, School Library Journal

“Roth achieves startling collage images that beautifully enhance a comic Australian folktale...The colors, textures, and layout of the illustrations place readers smack-dab in the Australian outback. There are other stories about Tiddalik the frog - Roth mentions her inspiration in an author's note, and also provides a glossary - but this one casts a very long spell.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“Roth gathered papers from all over the world, eucalyptus leaves from California and a myth from the Dreamtime. From these she has created a book with sparkle and loads of kid-appeal.”
- The San Diego Union Tribune

“The text is sparse - only 45 words - but Roth packs it with visual appeal by using a variety of lettering styles and colors to achieve special effects.”
- School Library Journal

“Three children and a dog tiptoe around in the dark, crawling, bumping into one another, shining flashlights, and finding ways to be startled and scared. The collage illustrations - constructed of paper and fabric (specifically, cloth closely associated with the manufacture of pajamas) - convey a strong sense of undirected physical activity usually linked to wandering through the night...”
- Kirkus Reviews

“While Hooper's textual explanation of why we have rainbows is notably inventive, it is Roth's almost hyperactive collages that hog the spotlight... The collages, cheeky in their multiplicity of colors, patterns, and textures, are a visual smorgasbord.”
- Booklist

“The old lady who lives in a house at the back of the wind has her chores to do.... For each of these tasks she dons a scarf of a different color.... Roth brings to the amiable show bright, busy collages; these are original and entertaining ...”
- Kirkus Reviews

How Thunder and Lightning Came to Be
(1995) Dial
retold by Beatrice Orcutt Harrell
(also available in Korean)

• A Wisconsin Library Association Outstanding Achievement
• A Cooperative Children's Book Center Choice

“An inspired story and visual pleasure, from a new author and a well-known collagist... Roth's pages are bright, good-humored, and wildly inventive; lightning is rendered in broken and sprinkled snatches of white darting across the page. Her ability to compose canny gestures and poses - the leaning close for a whisper, a crazy-legged pursuit of tumbling eggs - is almost eerie and always effective.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“Roth outdoes herself with the exceptional cut-paper collages illustrating this folktale, told by a debut author of Choctaw descent... So intricate and detailed is Roth's scissorwork that electric-blue Heloha and robust red Melatha seem constructed of feathers, not paper.”
- Publishers Weekly

The Great Ball Game
(1994) Dial
retold by Joseph Bruchac
(also available in Korean)

• A Junior Library Guild Selection
• A Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies
• A Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Picture Book Award
• A Wisconsin Library Association Outstanding Achievement
• A Child Study Children’s Book Committee Children’s Book of the Year
• Kaleidoscope, A Multicultural Booklist for Grades K-8, Second Edition; National Council of Teachers of English

“Bruchac’s retelling is elegant and graceful... The story is enhanced by Roth’s artful cut- and torn-paper collages...”
- The Horn Book

“How the bat found its niche in the animal kingdom and why birds fly south in winter are explained in this Muskogee tale, one of a dozen similar stories on the topic found in Native American lore...Roth's distinctive collages have a Red Grooms busyness ranging from bright and appealing to appropriately subtle, rendered from elegant handmade papers gathered in Tibet, Italy, Japan, and Thailand.”
- Kirkus Reviews

Buddha
(1994) Bantam Doubleday Dell

“Roth’s writing stresses the vitality of this tale from one of the world's great religions; she underscores its impact with a factual afterword. The collages here are especially beautiful, radiant in color and zestful in spirit. They hum with details of another culture, and yet retain a universal simplicity."
- Publishers Weekly

“The extraordinary illustrations are collage torn from handmade paper... An ambitious offering.”
- Booklist

“Susan L. Roth’s rich retelling of the life of the great religious leader…”
- The San Francisco Chronicle

Pass the Fritters, Critters
(2007) Four Winds Press
written by Cheryl Chapman
(also available in Spanish)

• Represented in The Original Art Show, Society of Illustrators, N.Y.C.
• A Parents’ Choice Honor
• A Children’s Book-of-the-Month Club Selection

“If Miss Manners swallowed a rhyming dictionary, she might have produced this spirited seminar on lunchtime etiquette... Roth’s cut-paper collages... add to the zaniness with gay swaths of color and festive touches.”
- starred review, Publishers Weekly

“Chapman’s first book is an ingenious exploration of language, rhymes, and manners... The toothy alligator and the other animals, plus a brown-skinned child, are all cheerfully rendered in arresting collages of paper and fabric in vibrant colors. After a first reading, kids will enjoy chiming in on the answers.”
- Kirkus Reviews

Ishi's Tale of Lizard
(1992) Farrar Straus Giroux
translated by Leanne Hinton

• An American Booksellers Association Pick of the List
• An Aesop Accolade, American Folklore Society
• A Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book

“[A] wonderfully imagined and moving book.”
- The New York Times Book Review

“With background notes that would warm the cockles of an anthropologist’s heart, Hinton has adapted some of the episodes told by Ishi, last of the California Yahi tribe, during the second decade of the twentieth century. From both an artistic and folkloristic point of view, Ishi’s story of Lizard is an intriguing one.”
- starred review, The Bulletin for the Center of Children’s Books

Another Christmas
(1992) Morrow Junior Books

“The year after Grandpa died, Dad takes the family to Puerto Rico for Christmas. It’s all very different, but Grandma makes important things the same for Ben – a tree, the right angel, gingerbread men. Ebullient collage illustrations.”
- The New York Times Book Review

“Roth’s vibrant cut-paper collages seem to leap off the page; her choice of color perfectly suits the sun-drenched island landscape. A book which brims with life as it sensitively explores the responses of those who carry on after the death of a beloved family member.”
- The Horn Book

Gypsy Bird Song
(1991) Farrar Straus Giroux

• Represented in The Original Art Show, Society of Illustrators, N.Y.C

“Each page of this bold and eye-catching volume features a stunning cut-paper collage and an accompanying free-verse poem providing glimpses into many of the traditional aspects of gypsy life... A rousing introduction to a proud minority culture.”
- School Library Journal

“Visually arresting with bold patterns and bright colors, this picture book celebrates gypsies through the voice of a girl who revels in her family's way of life: the caravans, tinkering, fortune-telling, music, food, dress, bargaining, signs, campfires, dances, and kinship to nature... Just as the artwork is a series of cut-paper collages, so the text is a collage of free verse that forms a picture of gypsy ways.”
- Booklist

“Roth’s brilliant collages of cut paper and fabric leap from the pages, and her words bounce you along in a horse-drawn wagon as she takes the reader for a ride through a gypsy family’s day. Ms. Roth... has crafted another winner.”
- The Baltimore Sun

The Story of Light
(1990) Morrow Junior Books

• An American Booksellers Association Pick of the List
• A New York Public Library “100 Titles for Reading and Sharing”
• A Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies
• Kaleidoscope, A Multicultural Booklist for Grades K-8
• National Council of Teachers of English
• A Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Picture Book Award

“Throughout her visually stunning retelling of how the animals brought sunlight to the dark side of the earth, author Roth deploys her strong black-and-white effects like a magician... Roth’s illustrations are not only exciting, they’re hypnotic. A+”
- Entertainment Weekly

“In this Cherokee tale the animal people send possum, then buzzard, for light to dispel the dark on their side of the world; but lowly spider is the one who is finally able to bring the sun to her people. Roth illustrates her gracefully cadenced text with dramatic collages (they look like linoleum prints) in black and brilliant yellow. A striking book distinguished by outstanding use of graphics.”
- Kirkus Reviews

“The unity of story and pictures here is remarkable.”
- The Chicago Tribune

Marco Polo: His Notebook
(1990) Bantam Doubleday Dell

“In short journal entries this handsome slim volume captures some of the Italian explorer’s great adventures as he and his father and uncle traveled all the way through Asia on a journey that took 24 years.”
- The New York Times Book Review

“This handsome volume is a fictional diary of the journeys of Marco Polo... [A]n eloquent introduction to the man and the journey that opened many Western eyes to Eastern ways.”
- Booklist

We'll Ride Elephants Through Brooklyn
(1989) Farrar Straus Giroux

• Represented in The Original Art Show, Society of Illustrators, N.Y.C.

“When Grandpa gets better, the narrator of this joyful anthem announces there will be a slam-bang parade and celebration.”
- The New York Times Book Review

“Brilliantly colored and highly stylized collages provide a sunny, joyous atmosphere for the text. The little girl's hair streams across the pages like sunbeams. This is another tribute to intergenerational love, a popular subject these days, and surely a reflection of the childhood yearning for everything to be okay.”
- School Library Journal

“In a joyous cut-paper collage that matches her cheerful text, the narrator imagines the family celebration ‘when Grandpa gets better’... Bold, colorful illustrations make this a winning portrait of family rejoicing.”
- Kirkus Reviews

Fire Came to the Earth People
(1988) St. Martin's Press

• A New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Book

“A folk tale starring the chameleon and tortoise is told in brilliant collages.”
- The New York Times Book Review

”The story, told in rhythmic language, is illustrated with bright, bold collages based on appliqué stitcheries created by the Dahomean people. The vivid, elemental images on black backgrounds are both handsome and evocative, adding much to the telling.”
- Booklist

“Lyrical and lovely.”
- The Daily News, New York

Kanahena
(1988) St. Martin's Press
by Susan L. Roth

“This lively retelling of the traditional Cherokee tale of Terrapin, who outwits the Bad Wolf and the Other Wolves, is paired with strikingly imaginative collage illustrations... [A] handsome presentation.”
- Booklist

We Build A Climber
(1986) Atheneum
written with Ruth Phang

“The concept is excellent, and the woodcuts with which the book are illustrated, delightful.”
- School Library Journal

• A Teacher’s Choice
• A Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choice

“When the granddaughter asks for a quilt of her own, Grandma suggests they make one together. Brief directions for a doll’s quilt follow. . . . A charming book, thoughtfully put together.”
- School Library Journal