The Bluest of Blues: Anna Atkins and the First Book of Photographs


Fiona Robinson - 2019
    He gave her a scientific education, which was highly unusual for women and girls in the early 19th century. Fascinated with the plant life around her, Anna became a botanist. She recorded all her findings in detailed illustrations and engravings, until the invention of cyanotype photography in 1842. Anna used this new technology in order to catalogue plant specimens—a true marriage of science and art. In 1843, Anna published the book Photographs of British Algae: Cyanotype Impressions with handwritten text and cyanotype photographs. It is considered the first book of photographs ever published. Weaving together histories of women, science, and art, The Bluest of Blues will inspire young readers to embark on their own journeys of discovery and creativity.

The Great American Dust Bowl


Don Brown - 2013
    In fact, five of them could fit into the period at the end of this sentence.On a clear, warm Sunday, April 14, 1935, a wild wind whipped up millions upon millions of these specks of dust to form a duster—a savage storm—on America's high southern plains.The sky turned black, sand-filled winds scoured the paint off houses and cars, trains derailed, and electricity coursed through the air. Sand and dirt fell like snow—people got lost in the gloom and suffocated . . . and that was just the beginning.Don Brown brings the Dirty Thirties to life with kinetic, highly saturated, and lively artwork in this graphic novel of one of America's most catastrophic natural events: the Dust Bowl.

National Parks of the U.S.A.


Kate Siber - 2018
    Explore Florida's river-laced Everglades, travel down the white water rapids of the Grand Canyon, trek across the deserts of Death Valley and scale the soaring summits of the Rocky Mountains with this book that brings you up close to nature's greatest adventures. Packed with maps and fascinating facts about the flora and fauna unique to each park, this fully-illustrated coast-to-coast journey documents the nation’s most magnificent and sacred places—and shows why they should be preserved for future generations to enjoy. With maps and information about flora and fauna found in each of the 21 icon parks portrayed, this is a fantastic celebration of the great outdoors. Parks include: Acadia, Badlands, Big Bend, Biscayne, Bryce Canyon, Channel Islands, Death Valley, Denali, Everglades, Glacier, Glacier Bay, Grand Canyon, Great Smoky, Mountains, Hawaii volcanoes, Isle Royal, Mesa Verde, Olympic, Sequoia and Kings Canyon, Virgin Islands, Yellowstone and Yosemite.

UnBEElievables: Honeybee Poems and Paintings


Douglas Florian - 2012
    In fourteen funny, fact-filled honeybee poems and paintings, Douglas Florian explores the natural history of these often-unappreciated critters, revealing them to be a totally cool—and totally important—part of our ecosystem. Indeed, these buzzy bugs have been in the spotlight lately as wild bee populations are dwindling, honey prices are rising, and beekeeping has become a popular hobby.

Black Bird Yellow Sun


Steve Light - 2018
    As a solitary black bird wings its way through the day, little ones are treated to a magnificent flight from one vibrant color to another. Inimitable illustrator Steve Light showcases a new style in this board book for the youngest readers. Children can journey with the graceful black bird and its tiny worm friend past orange leaves, through green grass, onto gray rocks, under pink flowers, and more before coming to rest beneath a brilliant blue moon.

You Are Stardust


Elin Kelsey - 2011
    From its opening pages, the book suggests that we are intimately connected to the natural world; it compares the way we learn to speak to the way baby birds learn to sing, and the growth of human bodies to the growth of forests. Award-winning author Elin Kelsey — along with a number of concerned parents and educators around the world — believes children are losing touch with nature. This innovative picture book aims to reintroduce children to their innate relationship with the world around them by sharing many of the surprising ways that we are all connected to the natural world.Grounded in current science, this extraordinary picture book provides opportunities for children to use their imaginations and wonder about some big ideas. Soyeon Kim’s incredible diorama art enhances the poetic text, and her creative process is explored in full on the reverse side of the book’s jacket, which features comments from the artist. Young readers will want to pore over each page of this book, exploring the detailed artwork and pondering the message of the text, excited to find out just how connected to the Earth they really are.

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.

A Grand Old Tree


Mary Newell DePalma - 2005
    Every spring the grand old tree flowered and bore cherries for the squirrels and birds that made their homes in her leafy branches. And every year, seeds from the tree scattered in the wind, along with many millions of leaves. Mary Newell DePalma creates an emotional tale of life and renewal, of nature's bounty and quiet balance, illustrated with simple images made powerful with vivid colors and moving compositions.

Up!: How Families Around the World Carry Their Little Ones


Susan Hughes - 2017
    Up! depicts ten places around the world, from Afghanistan to northern Canada, Peru to West Africa. In each place, a mom, dad, grandparent, aunt, uncle, cousin, or sibling lovingly carries a baby.With various family configurations and settings ranging from a busy outdoor market to a high-rise apartment kitchen, the book wholeheartedly celebrates diversity. Gorgeous cut-paper collage art adds warmth and brightness, and brings the lyrical text to life. Repetition of the phrase “Upsy-daisy” on each spread lends familiarity, and reminds readers that love for a little one is a universal feeling.LEVELINGGrade Range: Pre-K–2Fountas & Pinnell: IReading Recovery: 15Lexile: AD 400LCOMMON COREL.1.5,5b,5c,5d,6W.1.1,2,3,5,6,7,8RF.1.1,2,3,3f,3g,4,4a,4cL.1.1,1b,1d,1g,1I,1j,2,2a,4,4cRI.1.1,2,3,4,6,7,8,10SL.1.1,1b,1c,2,3,4,5,6

Seed by Seed: The Legend and Legacy of John "Appleseed" Chapman


Esmé Raji Codell - 2012
    Use what you have2. Share what you have3. Respect nature4. Try to make peace where there is war5. You can reach your destination by taking small stepsAn insightful and friendly text, stunning mixed-media illustrations that combine wood, paper, paint, and fabric, and a winning mixture of information and inspiration make for a stellar picture book for all ages. Sure to be a classroom and seasonal favorite.

The Forever Garden


Laurel Snyder - 2017
     Every day, Honey tends her garden, thinning the lettuces, pulling up beets, and even singing to the kale. (Honey says if you listen carefully, you can hear the kale singing back!) Laurel, the little girl who lives next door, likes to help, weeding the rows, washing vegetables under the pump, and gathering speckled eggs from the chicken coop. But one day there is a FOR SALE sign in Honey's front yard. Honey's mother is sick, and she is moving away! What will happen to Honey's garden? And what will Laurel do without her friend? Here is a touching story that beautifully illustrates how friendship—just like a garden—grows. Praise for Swan: The Life and Dance of Anna Pavlova by Laurel Snyder: "Spare, poetic words sit as lightly as snowflakes." —The Wall Street Journal

Festival of Colors


Surishtha Sehgal - 2018
    Siblings Mintoo and Chintoo are busy gathering flowers to make into colorful powders to toss during the festival. And when at last the big day comes, they gather with their friends, family, and neighbors for a vibrant celebration of fresh starts, friendship, forgiveness, and, of course, fun!

Gregor Mendel: The Friar Who Grew Peas


Cheryl Bardoe - 2006
    Regarded as the world’s first geneticist, Mendel overcame poverty and obscurity to discover one of the fundamental aspects of genetic science: animals, plants, and people all inherit and pass down traits through the same process, following the same rules. Living the slow-paced, contemplative life of a friar, Gregor Mendel was able to conceive and put into practice his great experiment: growing multiple generations of peas. From observing yellow peas, green peas, smooth peas, and wrinkled peas, Mendel crafted his theory of heredity—years before scientists had any notion of genes. Children will be inspired by Gregor’s neverending search for knowledge, and his famous experiments are easy to understand as an introduction to genetics. F&P level: Q

Marsupials


Nic Bishop - 2009
    With breathtaking full-page images, including a double-gatefold spread, Sibert-Honor photographer Nic Bishop introduces the beauty and diversity of these amazing animals. The simple, engaging text presents both basic information and fun, quirky facts about marsupials' appearance, habits, and life cycle. An index and glossary are included.

Busy Boats


Tony Mitton - 2002
    Then take a cruise on an ocean liner, crewed by our favorite animal characters, in a jolly rhyming journey.