There's plenty to look forward to in March for young readers. Here are several books hitting the shelves in time for March reading madness for elementary schoolers.

"Girls Hold Up This World" by actress Jada Pinkett Smith (Scholastic, $16.95) is a girl-power poem and picture book with photos featuring actor Will Smith's wife and family.

It's a positive celebration, and the photos by Donyell Kennedy-McCullough of girls engaged in play, dance, sports and sharing love and friendship are beautiful. Grown-up girls will enjoy sharing this book with younger ones.

"Heroes and She-Roes" by J. Patrick Lewis (Dial Books for Young Readers, $16.99) offers a broad mix of people to admire, including a firefighter and a teacher.

Another festive and fun holiday falling in March is St. Patrick's Day, which schools embrace with green cupcakes and cookies. "Flying Feet: A Story of Irish Dance" by Anna Marlis Burgard (Chronicle, $15.95) tells the story of two dancers competing for one spot and showing their skills for the folk of a small Irish village. The story sends readers right over to Ireland, and the illustrations by Leighanne Dees make it come alive.

Maybe your dog lover would like "Never Cry Woof: A Dog-U-Drama," retold and illustrated by Jane Wattenberg (Scholastic, $16.95). It's a cautionary tale based on the old Henny-Penny story. Doggone cute photos help tell it.

Just in time for Easter, a paperback reprint of Dav Pilkey's "The Dumb Bunnies" (Scholastic, $5.99) has been issued. If you don't know the dumb bunnies, you should. Children love Pilkey's humor and crazy drawings.

Speaking of humor, bathroom humor is something elementary school students find funny. "The Truth About Poop" (Viking, $15.99) from Susan Goodman has a title that will intrigue children and actually offers all kinds of scoops on, well, you know what. The comical drawings are by Elwood Smith.

Another treat that's perfect for the Easter basket or a spring break car trip comes from Klutz. The company has a new line of doodle books - "Doodle Faces," "Doodle Dogs" and "Doodle Cats" - that are packaged as spiral-bound notebooks with a pencil and small paper roll. ($9.95 each).