Book Finder

After a natural death, a whale provides continued life for numerous sea and land creatures for many years. Follow one 90-year-old whale in its environment and after its life has ended, through accessible language and highly informative illustrations in this stunning book.

Errors led to creative solutions as the Webb Space Telescope was designed and tested leading to amazing eyes in the skies. Over 20,000 people contributed to its success and are introduced through photographs and illuminating text. The author is an engineer who once worked at NASA.

A mouth is for eating of course, but animals use them for so much more!  Discover how some use them for climbing and for storing food and what differentiates similar mouths. Dramatic illustrations and informative inserts create an informative, accessible book. Back matter includes a glossary and additional resources.

In the pages of this book, you’ll find a workshop filled with everything you need, including a head, a thorax, an abdomen, and much more. Written by an entomologist and accompanied by delightfully detailed illustrations, this wonderfully original take on insect anatomy will spark curiosity and engage even those who didn’t think they liked creepy, crawly things!

Join this “mysterious FACTopia tour…” to encounter top secrets, unsolved mysteries, dark caves, deep ocean dwellers, hidden history, and more. Lots more! Photographs and comical illustrations combine for an intriguing, fact-based jaunt through time and places.

Become a keen nature observer: an observologist! Cartoon-like illustrations and open text resemble a journal, inviting readers to look closely at the small things around them.

Handsome graphics accompany crisp text in this thorough exploration of insects, their sizes, and fascinating facts about them. The suggestions on what to do to protect insects are doable. Additional resources and an author’s note are included.  

Many animals are extinct — but not only is there a great deal that can be done to stop continued extinction, new creatures continue to be discovered. Handsome, detailed illustrations combine with brief narrations just right for dipping in and out. Done in collaboration with the Smithsonian, the book includes additional information and resources.

Although two-thirds of the world is covered by oceans, a mere five percent of them have been explored. Readers are invited into the history of diving through engaging, realistic illustrations and informative narration, from ancient times to the present.  An author’s note and additional backmatter conclude this attractive book.

A prickly hotel? Plants and animals thrive because of the cactus and its spring flowers, seeds, et al! The simple text describing this environment and the lives it supports provides an intriguing introduction to the desert ecosystem.

Singing, playing, and talking to the seed didn’t help it bloom, but when the children listened to nature — placing the seed in a bed of soil — it flowered all summer. In autumn, the plant left them the gift of more seeds to plant next year. Child-like illustrations complement the straightforward text. 

A rhyming text and detailed illustrations combine to reveal bees’ activity, culminating in a large gatefold to reveal a lush garden. Backmatter provides information about types of bees and their role in pollination.

Intended for young readers, adults will likely be as intrigued at the graphical presentation of information which can be consumed in large bites or small chunks.

The title says it all!  Brief but accessible information about a range of topics is ideal to dip into or spend hours poring over.  

The “ick” factor combines with humorous illustrations and solid information to present the plagues that have afflicted people for centuries. From the bubonic plague to scurvy, the informal narrative is edifying, engaging, and well-documented — offering young readers a unique look at the history of disease.  

The deep-sea submersible named Alvin can carry three people. “In its [50 year] lifetime, Alvin has changed minds, science, and lives.” Join the exploration of how this was achieved in an accessible but fully sourced narrative, punctuated with black and white photographs.

Wrap-around stories are used to present fascinating information in an inviting, accessible, and authoritative way. This title from the Science Comics series provides information about commonplace creatures now at risk. Another book, World War II: Fight on the Home Front (opens in a new window) (from the History Comics series), provides a look at the impact of the last century’s war on those not engaged on the frontline.  

Are the creatures in this lighthearted look at dangerous animals out to get humans or are they just doing what they need to survive and thrive? Common names as well as Latin names are presented alongside a humorous illustration and an invented name for the critter’s survival mechanism. 

An expert presents information about how plants can combat some of the world’s biggest problems. Colorful illustrations and solid text features (including a glossary) create a hopeful look at combating climate change.

An expert invites the reader to join him as he explains how animals communicate. From insect stridulation (chirping, really) to underwater clicks and cracks, each sound is presented and then explained (translated, really). Well-organized and illustrated in full-color comics engage as well as inform.

Physics can be fun, and just as important, its principles are seen in everyday activities. Straightforward language complemented by basic illustrations present information and encourage experimentation.  

Science continually evolves as new information is uncovered — literally, in the case of fossilized dinosaurs. Accessible, digestible, and engaging information is presented in an oversized, generously illustrated format.

Folk art and crisp language introduce the human heart to readers (along with some interesting tidbits about other creatures’ hearts). Accessibly written by a pediatric cardiologist, this handsome book can be read from cover to cover or dipped in and out of.

Following each rhyming clues is the animal that inspired various inventions such as snowshoes and water fins. More familiar inventions are followed by lift-the-flaps to intrigue or confound more sophisticated readers.