The Incredible Painting of Felix Clousseau by Jon Agee*

Famous painters gather in Paris, France to display their amazing artwork.  At first everyone scoffs at Felix Clousseau's duck painting but then it quacks!  He quickly rises to stardom but just as rapidly falls when his paintings cause havoc.  One painting may just save his life.
A wonderful, surprise ending that will make readers ask questions and think!!
Daily CAFE recommended using this book to model finding word parts to read larger words.  I would use it for the primary grades (K-2nd) to model this skill.
*Highly recommend.
Strategies/skills: decoding, asking questions, predicting, inferring

Animalia by Graeme Base*

Beautifully illustrated . . .intriguing . . .will keep readers focused for a long time.  Each letter of the alphabet is represented with a phrase that begins with the corresponding letter.  Objects in the illustrations begin with the letter of course.
*Highly recommend
Skills: decoding, word choice, alliteration