Autumn is a special time of year; it’s plentifall, eventfall, and a time to be thankfall. The play on words is the title of each short, engaging poem complemented by boldly shaped, fall-colored scenes. It’s a feast for the eye as well as the ear when read aloud.
Wonderfall
It’s no longer summer but not yet winter; it’s autumn and a time of change. Handsome illustrations enliven fall colors that accompany a simple rhyming text for an appealing and satisfying look at the season.
Hocus Pocus, It’s Fall!
A child converses with the changing world around her as she observes and explores the transition from late summer to autumn. Simple illustrations accompany a rhythmic text on this jaunt through woods and a town
Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn
An oak tree grows because an acorn falls to the ground; a bird nests in that tree, and so begins an environmental cycle. Small die-cuts in richly hued illustrations glimpse the next in the progression that accompanies a simple, straightforward text.
Because of an Acorn
They live in prairies, they’re very important to the environment but these dogs wouldn’t make good pets. Meet prairie dogs in this handsomely illustrated, lively, and informative book told in a familiar cadence with music and additional resources included.
Prairie Dog Song: The Key to Saving North America’s Grasslands
Regardless of where they live, camouflage helps protect animals. Cut-paper collage and short poems introduce a variety of insects and animals that fly, swim, and live on land or in water. Poetry is short, rhythmic, and appealing followed by additional information and further resources.
Now You See Them, Now You Don’t: Poems about Creatures That Hide
Whether they’re fish or fungi, these creatures share the ability to create their own light or glow. Most live in deep seas but some – like fireflies – are easily seen on land particularly at dusk. Two volumes present information about bioluminescent animals in amazing photographs and lucid text.
Way to Glow! Amazing Creatures that Light Up in the Dark
Why be afraid of the dark when there is so much to see? Whether it’s used to hunt, hide, find a friend, or escape an enemy, bioluminescence—the ability to glow—is a unique adaptation in nature. In this fun and fascinating nonfiction picture book, join world-renowned photographers and biologists on their close encounters with the curious creatures that make their own light.
Glow: Animals with Their Own Nightlights
Loggerhead turtles are confused by artificial lights on the beach. A group of children work to turn them out so that turtle hatchlings can follow the moon to the sea. The story of how children became activists and can continue to contribute positively is engagingly presented. Suggestions conclude this attractive, can-do book.
Follow the Moon Home
A colony of penguins, a pod of whales, a formation of rocks, and other groups of animate and inanimate things bring a lonely child to his own group. The joyful reunion creates a family. Stylized illustrations are rich with humor and liveliness, deserving of many readings.
There Is a Tribe of Kids
Energetic illustrations depict a day in the life of animals on the African savanna. They lunge and trot, leap and scurry as they hunt and are hunted. The animals’ speeds are noted in a concluding note.
Run for Your Life: Predators and Prey on the African Savanna
A walking octopus? A swimming elephant? A flying snake? Yes! Animals move in varied, unexpected ways. Stunning collage illustrations and informative text present a range of animals and how they move. Additional information about where these animals live is included.
Flying Frogs and Walking Fish
What is wild? Can it be found only outside of the city or does the city hold a bit of natural wild? Lush illustrations and suggestive language raise questions about what wild really is and where it can be found.
Finding Wild
Cricket Song
Look at some of the amazing animals found near or in the ocean in colorful, sometimes sparkly illustration. Lift the flap; touch the texture to find out a bit more about them in this sturdy, appealing, and informative, surprisingly sophisticated book.
Touch and Explore the Ocean
Short poems and gentle illustrations present seasons almost as a journal. Each entry captures natural beauty and emotions that often accompany them. For example the March 13 entry: “politely/but tired of mittens/I asked winter to please tell the snow/thank you very much, but no”.
When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for All Seasons
The alphabet is used to introduce animals of the cloud forest and its most recently discovered resident, the elusive olinguito. Handsome illustrations and brief information appear in both Spanish and English as does more complete information at this stunning book’s conclusion.
Olinguito, from A to Z!: Unveiling the Cloud Forest / Olinguito, de la A a la Z!: Descubriendo el bosque numblado
A town transforms from dreary to delighted when a night gardener provides a new topiary to be seen each day. Muted colors in highly detailed illustration depict the impact of the creative gardener on the townspeople as they enjoy the outdoors.
The Night Gardener
Don’t toss that tube, use it to create! Clearly presented ideas for crafts, games and other activities are displayed in this well organized, accessible book – a creative way to recycle and reuse “trash.”
Junk Re-Thunk
Short, evocative poems – haiku – present clues about familiar animals. With a turn of the page, the answer is revealed in bold typeface and a charming illustration. This short poetic form is effectively used to play a guessing game.
Guess Who, Haiku
Air is all around us and is crucial to all living things on earth. In poetic language and handsome photographs of people from around the globe, the importance of clean air is presented. Additional information is presented at the back of the book.
Every Breath We Take: A Book About Air
What do these 17 animals — from tarantulas to blobfish to seahorse and with lots in between — share in common? Each one is pink! An amazing array of pink animals is presented in image and text to inform, intrigue, and inspire. Additional information is included.
Pink Is for Blobfish
Lots of eggs all “Round and spotted/polka-dotted” are in the pond. Readers will soon see tadpoles “Wiggle tails!/Squiggle tales!” emerge in this light, rhyming journey from egg to frog. Delightful wordplay combines with comic illustrations, many on pages that open to double the size, sure to engage young readers or listeners.
Leaps and Bounce
Julia “Butterfly” Hill was born much later than Luna, a thousand year old redwood tree. But her bravery and tenacity saved Luna and the forest from destruction by living in the tree for about two years. This unusual story of activism is told from the perspective of both Butterfly and Luna accompanied by gentle, eye-catching, and informative illustrations.