Let's face it. Even as babies, we humans pay close attention to faces. Observing another person's features and expressions tells us whether they are happy, angry, excited, or sad. And when we look at an animal, it's hard not to imagine that its face is communicating human feelings. This isn't true, of course. Squinty eyes, an upturned mouth, or another odd expression is probably there because, in some way, it helps that animal survive.      Packed with many cool facts and visuals on where certain animals live and what they eat, this book captures twenty-five humorous—and very true—explanations of why animals look the way they do in order to exist in this world.

    All around the world -- in the sea, in the soil, in the air, and in your body -- there are living things so tiny that millions could fit on an ant's antenna. They're busy doing all sorts of things, from giving you a cold and making yogurt to eroding mountains and helping to make the air we breathe. If you could see them with your eye, you'd find that they all look different, and that they're really good at changing things into something else and at making many more microbes like themselves! From Nicola Davies comes a first exploration for young readers of the world's tiniest living organisms.

    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.

    An original pen-and-ink drawing illustrates each insightful explanation of odd but characteristic cat actions, social graces and sometimes kooky quirks.

    Tammie Lyon’s illustrations rendered in gouache and colored pencil add lively appeal to this endearing story of a little girl and her new dog.

    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

    Rudy works on a self-portrait, a still life, a landscape, found art, a sculpture—all with disastrous results! Then he tries to create an artistic masterpiece, but…SPLAT! Has Rudy finally become an artist? Dynamic duo Rudy and Claude bring big personalities to this basic introduction to art.

    Out of this tank, I must be free.I must explore the open sea!Inky the octopus is bored with aquarium life and wants to escape to the ocean! But just how can an octopus in a tank get to the open seas? Find out in Inky the Octopus, the only tale of the mischievous octopus to be officially endorsed by the National Aquarium of New Zealand.

    Laura Purdie Salas's lyrical rhyming text and Violeta Dabija's glowing illustrations show how rocks decorate and strengthen the world around them.

    As a pragmatic, hands-on guide for beginning to intermediate hobbyists, The Conscientious Marine Aquarist demystifies the process of planning, setting up, stocking, and managing a beautiful, thriving slice of the tropical ocean. A leading advocate for the responsible collection and care of wild-caught specimens, Fenner starts with the basics -- "What is a fish?" -- and proceeds to give the reader the scientific background and expert-level secrets to being a smarter consumer, better steward, and more successful marine aquarium keeper.

    Yet, while common, oak woodlands are anything but ordinary. In a book rich in illustration and suffused with wonder, author Kate Marianchild combines extensive research and years of personal experience to explore some of the marvelous plants and animals that the oak woodlands nurture. Acorn woodpeckers unite in marriages of up to ten mates and raise their young cooperatively. Ground squirrels roll in rattlesnake skins to hide their scent from hungry snakes. Manzanita's rust-colored, paper-thin bark peels away in time for the summer solstice, exposing sinuous contours that are cool to the touch even on the hottest day. Conveying up-to-the-minute scientific findings with a storyteller's skill, Marianchild introduces us to a host of remarkable creatures in a world close by, a world that rustles, hums, and sings with the sounds of wild things.

    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.

    Emerging from this singular life is a lyrical universal invitation not to mistake difference for defect and to welcome, across the accordion scales of time and space, diversity as the wellspring of the universe's beauty and resilience.

    Little Calf follows along and mimics her grandmother at each stop on their journey. When Grandma leads them to a watering hole she recalls from years before, the elephants are overjoyed and Little Calf splashes about with her tender leader. Grandma's persistence and powerful memory is something Little Calf will never forget. Based on true events. Sandra Markle's acclaimed nonfiction writing takes on a more lyrical style alongside Fabricio VandenBroeck's gorgeous illustrations making this story of animal behavior accessible for younger readers. Back matter includes further information about the phenomenon of a herd of elephants that survived a drought, as well as fascinating elephant facts.

    She had no idea how things worked in her new family, but like any good older sibling, Harlow explained how they celebrated holidays, took family vacations, and remembered their sister, Sage who had gone on to doggie heaven before Indiana was born. Over time, Indi started to get the hang of it all, and she found herself growing up. In Harlow & Indiana (and Reese), it’s Indi’s turn to be a big sister when baby Reese arrives. Reese is tinier than Harlow and Indiana could ever have imagined, and they have a lot to get used to with a new sibling in the house. Narrated by the sassy and rabble-rousing Indiana, Harlow & Indiana (and Reese) is as adorable and charming as Harlow & Sage, filled with more jokes, more adventures, and even more sibling love than before. Richly illustrated with entirely new images of the highly photogenic pups, Harlow & Indiana (and Reese) is a new story about the furry friends that have captured hearts across the globe.