Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain: A Nandi Tale


Verna Aardema - 1981
    A cumulative rhyme relating how Ki-pat brought rain to the drought-stricken Kapiti Plain. Verna Aardema has brought the original story closer to the English nursery rhyme by putting in a cumulative refrain and giving the tale the rhythm of “The House That Jack Built.”

I Am the Storm


Jane Yolen - 2020
    Beloved author Jane Yolen and her daughter Heidi Stemple address four distinct weather emergencies (a tornado, a blizzard, a forest fire, and a hurricane) with warm family stories of finding the joy in preparedness and resilience. Their honest reassurance leaves readers with the message: nature is powerful, but you are powerful, too. Illustrated in rich environmental tones and featuring additional information about storms in the back, this book educates, comforts, and empowers young readers in stormy or sunny weather, and all the weather in between.

Sequoia


Tony Johnston - 2014
    He watches as days, seasons, years pass by. His branches are home to owls and choirs of frogs. Beneath his broad canopy, a world grows.This is his story. Through controlled verse and luscious illustration, Tony Johnston and Wendell Minor do justice to the enormous figure of the sequoia tree. A Neal Porter Book

Farmer Will Allen and the Growing Table


Jacqueline Briggs Martin - 2013
    A former basketball star, he's as tall as his truck, and he can hold a cabbage--or a basketball--in one hand. But what is most special about Farmer Will is that he can see what others can't see. When he looked at an abandoned city lot in Milwaukee he saw a huge table, big enough to feed the whole world.No space, no problem. Poor soil, there's a solution. Need help, found it. Farmer Will is a genius in solving problems. In 2008, the MacArthur Foundation named him one for his innovative urban farming methods, including aquaponics and hydroponics.Jacqueline Briggs Martin, author of the Caldecott Medal winner, Snowflake Bentley, and Alice Waters and the Trip to Delicious , along with debut artist Eric-Shabazz Larkin's striking artwork, tells the inspiring story of the African American innovator, educator, and community builder.Farmer Will Allen is the first book of Martin's Food Heroes series, followed by Alice Waters and the Trip to Delicious. In 2015, it was selected by Points of Light Foundation to set a new Guinness World Record for the most children reading the same book across the globe to promote literacy. Nearly 300,000 participated.

The Junkyard Wonders


Patricia Polacco - 2010
    She moved from her old town so she wouldn't be in a special class anymore! But then she meets her teacher, the quirky and invincible Mrs. Peterson, and her classmates, an oddly brilliant group of students each with his or her own unique talent. And it is here in The Junkyard that Trisha learns the true meaning of genius, and that this group of misfits are, in fact, wonders, all of them. Based on a real-life event in Patricia Polacco's childhood, this ode to teachers will inspire all readers to find their inner genius.

Fur, Feather, Fin—All of Us Are Kin


Diane Lang - 2018
    Some have fur, some have feathers, some have fins, but all are connected. This fact-filled rhyming exploration of the diversity of the animal kingdom celebrates mammals, birds, insects, fish, reptiles, amphibians, and more! It’s a perfect match for budding naturalists and animal enthusiasts everywhere.

Seeds Move!


Robin Page - 2019
    But how do seeds get to the perfect place to grow? This exploration of seed dispersal covers a wide range of seeds and the creatures that help them move, from a coconut seed floating on waves to an African grass seed rolled by a dung beetle, to a milkweed seed floating on the wind.

"L" is for Library


Sonya Terry - 2006
    Simple alphabet rhyming text and colorful illustrations describe a journey through the library.

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!

Dogs: From Predator to Protector


Andy Hirsch - 2017
    These gorgeously illustrated graphic novels offer wildly entertaining views of their subjects. Whether you're a fourth grader doing a natural science unit at school or a thirty year old with a secret passion for airplanes, these books are for you!

On The Origin of Species


Sabina Radeva - 2019
    But scientists started to challenge that idea and in 1859 Charles Darwin, a naturalist and biologist, wrote a famous book called On the Origin of Species that revolutionised the way that we have understood evolution ever since.Now molecular biologist and illustrator Sabina Radeva has recreated Darwin's most famous work as a beautifully illustrated book. The stunning pictures bring the theory of evolution to life for young readers, and anyone who wants to learn about evolution.Pulling together Darwin's observations from his travels around the world and his ground-breaking explanation of how species form, develop, and change over hundreds of thousands of years, On The Origin of Species is as relevant and important now as it ever was.A very important project, most beautifully realised. Sabina Radeva's thoughtful text and gorgeous pictures together tell the story of On The Origin of Species, and of Evolution itself, with clarity, humour and great charm. - Emma Darwin An entrancing picture-book retelling of Darwin's on the Origin of Species ... filled with informative, beautifully designed diagrams and maps. - The Guardian

Drawn from Nature


Helen Ahpornsiri - 2018
    Using nothing but pressed plants, this journey through the seasons captures the wonder and magic of the natural world between the pages of a book. This standout title with beautiful nonfiction text will take readers through an extraordinary year in the wild.

Beauty and the Beak: How Science, Technology, and a 3d-Printed Beak Rescued a Bald Eagle


Deborah Lee Rose - 2017
    Follow Beauty's brave and inspiring story as she grows up in the wild, is rescued after being illegally shot, and receives a new beak specially engineered by a human team including a raptor biologist, engineer and dentist. Learn more about how bald eagles as a species came back from near extinction, and about nationwide efforts to conserve this American symbol.

The Tragic Tale of the Great Auk


Jan Thornhill - 2016
    But by 1844, not a single one of these magnificent birds was alive.In this stunningly illustrated non-fiction picture book, award-winning author and illustrator Jan Thornhill tells the tragic story of these birds that “weighed as much as a sack of potatoes and stood as tall as a preteen’s waist.” Their demise came about in part because of their anatomy. They could swim swiftly underwater, but their small wings meant they couldn’t fly and their feet were so far back on their bodies, they couldn’t walk very well. Still the birds managed to escape their predators much of the time … until humans became seafarers.Great Auks were pursued first by Vikings, then by Inuit, Beothuk and finally European hunters. Their numbers rapidly dwindled. They became collectors’ items — their skins were stuffed for museums, to be displayed along with their beautiful eggs. (There are some amazing stories about these stuffed auks — one was stolen from a German museum during WWII by Russian soldiers; another was flown to Iceland and given a red-carpet welcome at the airport.)Although undeniably tragic, the final demise of the Great Auk led to the birth of the conservation movement. Laws were eventually passed to prevent the killing of birds during the nesting season, and similar laws were later extended to other wildlife species.

Can You Hear the Trees Talking?: Discovering the Hidden Life of the Forest


Peter Wohlleben - 2017
    Now, Peter shares his famous imagination and storytelling style with children, asking surprising questions about trees with exciting quizzes, photographs, and hands-on activities to help even the most reluctant learners discover the answers.Did you know that trees have parents, and tree grandparents with wrinkles? That tree kids go to school for hundreds of years? That there is such a thing as the forest internet? And that trees make us healthy and strong. Sometimes, even trees get sick, but we can help them heal.Can You Hear the Trees Talking? shares the mysteries and magic of the forest in language kids will love and understand.