A House Is a House for Me


Mary Ann Hoberman - 1978
    The poem engages in flights of fancy - what about a husk being a house for an ear of corn, or a throat being a house for a hum? "And once you get started in thinking this way,/ It seems that whatever you see/ Is either a house or it lives in a house,/ And a house is a house for me!" whimsical drawings color the imaginative text.

Stone Girl, Bone Girl: The Story of Mary Anning


Laurence Anholt - 1999
    A brief biography of the English girl whose discovery of an Ichthyosaurus skeleton in 1811 when she was twelve led to a life-long interest in fossils and other important discoveries.

Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden


George Levenson - 1999
    It's pumpkin seeds to pumpkins to pumpkin seeds again!This treat of a picture book comes cloaked in the colors of fall. Bouncy verse and glowing photographs show a backyard pumpkin patch move through its natural cycle--a bug's eye and a bird's high view of seeds sprouting, flowers blooming, bees buzzing, pumpkins growing . . .and then going back to earth.An author's note explains how to grow your own pumpkin.

The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau


Dan Yaccarino - 2009
    His popular TV series brought whales, otters, and dolphins right into people s living rooms. Now, in this exciting picturebook biography, Dan Yaccarino introduces young readers to the man behind the snorkel. From the first moment he got a glimpse of what lived under the ocean s waves, Cousteau was hooked. And so he set sail aboard the Calypso to see the sea. He and his team of scientists invented diving equipment and waterproof cameras. They made films and televisions shows and wrote books so they could share what they learned. The oceans were a vast unexplored world, and Cousteau became our guide. And when he saw that pollution was taking its toll on the seas, Cousteau became our guide in how to protect the oceans as well."

Bugs from Head to Tail


Stacey Roderick - 2017
    A full spread asks a question about a body part, What bug has eyes like this?? with an illustrated close-up of that part. The following spread provides the answer to the question, A grasshopper!? along with a full illustration of the creature in its habitat and a paragraph of text about the highlighted body part, in this case the grasshopper's eyes. Children learn about the bugs' habitats, diets, behaviors and standout skills. There's even a trick question: What bug has a tail like this?? The answer is None. Bugs don't have tails!The interactive guessing-game of the text --- with just the right amount of repetition --- makes this an ideal choice for reading aloud. The bright, eye-catching cut-paper collage illustrations by Kwanchai Moriya have a playful charm and invite young children to study the details up close. Besides the eight featured bugs, there is an additional spread that includes seven other bugs and their unusual body parts, as well as text that explores which animals are categorized as bugs, or arthropods.? This nonfiction book has direct applications to the life science curriculum in the early grades, which covers the physical characteristics and habitats of living things.

Do Not Lick this Book


Idan Ben-Barak - 2017
    She is small. Very small. In fact so small that you'd need to look through a microscope to see her. Or you can simply open this book and take Min on an adventure to amazing places she's never seen before—like the icy glaciers of your tooth or the twisted, tangled jungle that is your shirt. The perfect book for anyone who wants to take a closer look at the world.

Tree: A Peek-Through Picture Book


Britta Teckentrup - 2015
    With clever peekaboo holes throughout, each page reveals a new set of animals playing and living in the tree—baby bears frolicking in the spring, bees buzzing around apples in the summer, squirrels storing nuts in the fall, and finally the lone owl keeping warm during the winter chill—until another year begins. . . .   Children will love seeing a new set of animals appear and then disappear as each page is turned, and along the way they’ll learn about the seasons and how a forest and its inhabitants change throughout the year."Ideal for sharing up close, where little ones can get a good look at the pictures, this gentle, easy-to-memorize story of the seasons is a great fit for bedtime."—Booklist

Botanicum


Katie Scott - 2016
    With artwork from Katie Scott of Animalium fame, Botanicum gives readers the experience of a fascinating exhibition from the pages of a beautiful book. From perennials to bulbs to tropical exotica, Botanicum is a wonderful feast of botanical knowledge complete with superb cross sections of how plants work.

Falcon


Tim Jessell - 2012
    Soaring through the skies, he describes the sights and sounds of the world below. From snow-capped mountains to lush valleys, over rolling ocean and up rocky cliffs, Falcon will awaken the senses of every reader.

Project Puffin: The Improbable Quest to Bring a Beloved Seabird Back to Egg Rock


Stephen W. Kress - 1997
    As a young ornithology instructor at the Hog Island Audubon Camp, Dr. Stephen W. Kress learned that puffins had nested on nearby islands until extirpated by hunters in the late 1800s. To right this environmental wrong, he resolved to bring puffins back to one such island—Eastern Egg Rock. Yet bringing the plan to reality meant convincing skeptics, finding resources, and inventing restoration methods at a time when many believed in “letting nature take its course.” Today, Project Puffin has restored more than 1,000 puffin pairs to three Maine islands. But even more exciting, techniques developed during the project have helped to restore rare and endangered seabirds worldwide. Further, reestablished puffins now serve as a window into the effects of global warming. The success of Dr. Kress’s project offers hope that people can restore lost wildlife populations and the habitats that support them. The need for such inspiration has never been greater.

This First Thanksgiving Day: A Counting Story


Laura Krauss Melmed - 2001
    From I dressed in linen to 10 making baskets, this rollicking verse shows Wampanoag and Pilgrim friends preparing for and sharing a wonderful Thanksgiving feast.Vibrant illustrations from critically acclaimed artist Mark Buehner only add to the fun! Count up the rabbits, squirrels, and other small creatures tucked into each scene. Find the bold turkey on every page ... and for the very sharp of eye, there are all sorts of surprises hidden in the art!An entertaining story for children to read again and again, This First Thanksgiving Day will warm and enrich everyone's holiday season!

The Life and Times of the Honeybee


Charles Micucci - 1997
    He includes information on how bees make honey, what a beekeeper does, and products that contain beeswax--everything from lipstick to waxes for buffing surfboards. Micucci's rare gift for making science enjoyable and accessible is again revealed in this remarkably witty, rich salute to the honeybee.

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.

For the Birds: The Life of Roger Tory Peterson


Peggy Thomas - 2011
    Some kids called him "Professor Nuts Peterson" because of his dedication to his craft; yet he went on to create the immensely popular Peterson Guides, which have sold more than seven million copies, and which birders everywhere appreciate for their simple text and exquisite illustrations. Working closely with the Roger Tory Peterson Institute in Jamestown, New York, author Peggy Thomas and artist Laura Jacques have created a fascinating portrait of a global environmentalist with this very first children's biography of Peterson, a winner of the John Burroughs Nature Books for Young Readers Award.

Owl Sees Owl


Laura Godwin - 2016
       With just three or four words per page, this story follows a baby owl one night as he leaves the safety of his nest (Home/Mama/Brother/Sister) and explores the starry world around him (Soar/Glide/Swoop/Swoosh). Inspired by reverso poetry, the words reverse in the middle when the baby owl is startled upon seeing his reflection in the pond (Owl/Sees/Owl). Afraid of it, little owl takes off toward home, soaring over farms and forests (Swoosh/Swoop/Glide/Soar) until he is finally safely home again (Sister/Brother/Mama/Home).