Book picks similar to
Smart About Sharks by Owen Davey


non-fiction
picture-books
nonfiction
animals

The Cloud Book


Tomie dePaola - 1975
    Tomie dePaola--best-selling author of Strega Nona, Quiet, and many others--knows a lot about clouds. He also knows a lot about what people think of them.Some people see animals and pictures in clouds. The ancient Greeks believed that Hermes, the messenger of the gods, once stole the sun's cattle, which were clouds.In this unique picture book, Tomie introduces some of the most common types of clouds, as well as the myths and legends inspired by their shapes. Simple, whimsical illustrations show the variations in shape and color that herald changes in the weather.This book will tell you many things about clouds we bet you didn't know. Filled with his signature humor and gentle illustrations, Tomie dePaola's approach to nonfiction is like no other.A Reading Rainbow book.

Ten Little Caterpillars


Bill Martin Jr. - 1967
    . . . A butterfly, perhaps? Readers of all ages have celebrated the work of Bill Martin Jr and Lois Ehlert ever since their first collaboration on Chicka Chicka Boom Boom more than twenty-five years ago. Now these two picture-book geniuses are together again in this dynamic and visually stunning counting-and-natural history picture book that's just perfect for reading aloud--and comes complete with a glossary filled with intriguing information about all of the caterpillar stars!

Shackleton's Journey


William Grill - 2014
    His impeccably researched drawings, rich with detail, fastidiously reproduce the minutiae of the expedition.Children will love examining the diagrams of the peculiar provisions and the individual drawings of each sled dog and packhorse. This book takes the academic and historical information behind the expedition and reinterprets it for a young audience.

A Tree Is Nice


Janice May Udry - 1956
    She goes on to explain that even one tree is nice, if it is the only one you happen to have.Some of the reasons why trees are so good to have around are funny. Some are indisputable facts. But in all of them there is a sense of poetic simplicity and beauty which will be sure to entrance any young child. Whether he knows one tree or many, he will relish the descriptions of the delights to be had in, with, or under a tree.Marc Simont's joyous pictures, half of them in full color, accentuate the child-like charm of the words. And each painting of a tree or trees shows just how very nice they can be.

Skulls!


Blair Thornburgh - 2019
    So what’s the big deal about them? Well, every head of every person you’ve ever seen has a skull inside. And that includes YOU!

Animal Ark: Celebrating our Wild World in Poetry and Pictures


Kwame Alexander - 2017
    Three picture-packed gatefolds inside showcase even more familiar and exotic species. These images are part of Sartore's lifelong project to photograph every animal in the world, with special attention given to disappearing and endangered species.

Pale Male: Citizen Hawk of New York City


Janet Schulman - 2008
    Pale Male and his mate built their nest near the top of one of Fifth Avenue’s swankiest apartment buildings. Nine years and 23 chicks later, Pale Male’s fame had grown so large that a CBS newsman named him Father of the Year! But Pale Male was less beloved by the residents of the building, and in 2004 the owners suddenly removed the nest–setting off an international outcry on behalf of the birds.

Chickens Aren't the Only Ones: A Book About Animals that Lay Eggs


Ruth Heller - 1981
    Ruth Heller's prose and pictures are the perfect means for discovering the variety of oviparous animals and their unique ways of laying eggs.

A Place for Pluto


Stef Wade - 2018
    His planet status was stripped away, leaving him lost and confused. Poor Pluto! On his quest to find a place where he belongs, he talks to comets, asteroids, and meteoroids. He doesn't fit it anywhere! But when Pluto is about to give up, he runs into a dwarf planet and finally finds his place in the solar system. This feel-good picture book combines a popular science topic with character education themes of self discovery, acceptance, and friendship. It has bonus material in the back matter to support curriculum.

Blizzard


John Rocco - 2014
    Told with a brief text and dynamic illustrations, the book opens with a boy's excitement upon seeing the first snowflake fall outside his classroom window. It ends with the neighborhood's immense relief upon seeing the first snowplow break through on their street. In between the boy watches his familiar landscape transform into something alien, and readers watch him transform into a hero who puts the needs of others first.

The Tree Lady: The True Story of How One Tree-Loving Woman Changed a City Forever


H. Joseph Hopkins - 2013
    After all, Kate grew up among the towering pines and redwoods of Northern California. But after becoming the first woman to graduate from the University of California with a degree in science, she took a job as a teacher far south in the dry desert town of San Diego. Where there were almost no trees.Kate decided that San Diego needed trees more than anything else. So this trailblazing young woman singlehandedly started a massive movement that transformed the town into the green, garden-filled oasis it is today. Now, more than 100 years after Kate first arrived in San Diego, her gorgeous gardens and parks can be found all over the city.Part fascinating biography, part inspirational story, this moving picture book about following your dreams, using your talents, and staying strong in the face of adversity is sure to resonate with readers young and old.

Barnum's Bones: How Barnum Brown Discovered the Most Famous Dinosaur in the World


Tracey E. Fern - 2012
    Barnum, hoping that he would do something extraordinary--and he did! As a paleonotologist for the American Museum of Natural History, he discovered the first documented skeleton of the Tyrannosaurus Rex, as well as most of the other dinosaurs on display there today.An appealing and fun picture book biography, with zany and stunning illustrations by Boris Kulikov, BARNUM'S BONES captures the spirit of this remarkable man.

The Snail and the Whale


Julia Donaldson - 2003
    Together they go on an amazing journey, past icebergs and volcanoes, sharks and penguins, and the snail feels very small in the vastness of the world. But when the whale is beached in a bay, it's the tiny snail who saves the day.

This House, Once


Deborah Freedman - 2017
    Deborah Freedman’s masterful new picture book is at once an introduction to the pieces of a house, a cozy story to share and explore, and a dreamy meditation on the magic of our homes and our world.Before there was this house,there were stones,and mud,and a colossal oak tree—three hugs aroundand as high as the blue.What was your home, once?This poetically simple, thought-provoking, and gorgeously illustrated book invites readers to think about where things come from and what nature provides.

This Is Sadie


Sara O'Leary - 2015
    She has been a girl who lived under the sea and a boy raised by wolves. She has had adventures in wonderland and visited the world of fairytales. She whispers to the dresses in her closet and talks to birds in the treetops. She has wings that take her anywhere she wants to go, but that always bring her home again. She likes to make things -- boats out of boxes and castles out of cushions. But more than anything Sadie likes stories, because you can make them from nothing at all. For Sadie, the world is so full of wonderful possibilities ... This is Sadie, and this is her story.