My Life with the Chimpanzees


Jane Goodall - 1988
    While others thought Jane would be terrified by the toy, she adored it and it inspired a life-long love of animals in her. Jane dreamed of a life spent working with animals, and when she was twenty-six years old, she ventured into the forests of Africa to observe chimpanzees in the wild. During her expeditions she braved many dangers and she got to know an amazing group of wild chimpanzees—intelligent animals whose lives, in work and play and family relationships, bear a surprising resemblance to our own. Through her work at Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania and her own Roots and Shoots program she has become a tireless advocate for animals and the planet. As for that stuffed toy, Jubilee still sits on Goodall’s dresser in London.

The Blue Whale


Jenni Desmond - 2015
    Here, readers are given the actual size of an eye right on the page, and we are informed how understand this whale's body size in relation to trucks, cars, milk bottles, and hippos! With an accurate and engaging text, fully vetted by a blue whale expert, and lyrically lovely illustrations, The Blue Whale is a book that invites children in and holds their attention. Its tempo is like a pleasing melody, which means that the information never becomes too weighty or exhausting―a key thing when it comes to young readers and their enjoyment of a book!

Give Bees a Chance


Bethany Barton - 2017
    Give Bees a Chance is for anyone who doesn't quite appreciate how extra special and important bees are to the world, and even to humankind! Besides making yummy honey, they help plants grow fruits and vegetables. And most bees wouldn't hurt a fly (unless it was in self-defense!).Bethany Barton's interactive cartoon-style illustrations and hilarious narrator mean this book is full of facts and fun. With bees officially on the endangered animals list, it's more important now than ever to get on board with our flying, honey-making friends!

Lifetime: The Amazing Numbers in Animal Lives


Lola M. Schaefer - 2013
    This extraordinary book collects animal information not available anywhere else—and shows all 30 roosting holes, all 200 spots, and, yes!, all 1,000 baby seahorses in eye-catching illustrations. A book about picturing numbers and considering the endlessly fascinating lives all around us, Lifetime is sure to delight young nature lovers.

The World Is Blue: How Our Fate and the Ocean's Are One


Sylvia A. Earle - 2009
    Legendary marine scientist Sylvia Earle portrays a planet teetering on the brink of irreversible environmental crisis.In recent decades we’ve learned more about the ocean than in all previous human history combined. But, even as our knowledge has exploded, so too has our power to upset the delicate balance of this complex organism. Modern overexploitation has driven many species to the verge of extinction, from tiny but indispensable biota to magnificent creatures like tuna, swordfish, and great whales. Since the mid-20th century about half our coral reefs have died or suffered sharp decline; hundreds of oxygen-deprived "dead zones" blight our coastal waters; and toxic pollutants afflict every level of the food chain.Fortunately, there is reason for hope, but what we do—or fail to do—in the next ten years may well resonate for the next ten thousand. The ultimate goal, Earle argues passionately and persuasively, is to find responsible, renewable strategies that safeguard the natural systems that sustain us. The first step is to understand and act upon the wise message of this accessible, insightful, and compelling book.

Cute as an Axolotl: Discovering the World's Most Adorable Animals


Jess Keating
    Cute is for feathery-gilled axolotls (pronounced: ax-uh-LOT-ulz), shy pygmy hippos, poisonous blue dragons, and armored pangolins. All of these animals are cute, but they've also adapted remarkable ways to survive in their unique environments.

Meadowlands: A Wetlands Survival Story


Thomas F. Yezerski - 2011
    But in the four hundred years since European explorers first arrived in the Meadowlands, people have dammed up, drained, built over, and polluted this formerly vibrant ecosystem—and all but destroyed it. Still, signs of life remain; under bridges, on the edges of parking lots, and beside train tracks. Slowly but surely, with help from activist groups, government organizations, and ordinary people, the resilient creatures of the Meadowlands are making a comeback, and the wetlands are recovering.

Willodeen


Katherine Applegate - 2021
    . .Eleven-year-old Willodeen adores creatures of all kinds, but her favorites are the most unlovable beasts in the land: strange beasts known as “screechers.” The villagers of Perchance call them pests, even monsters, but Willodeen believes the animals serve a vital role in the complicated web of nature.Lately, though, nature has seemed angry indeed. Perchance has been cursed with fires and mudslides, droughts and fevers, and even the annual migration of hummingbears, a source of local pride and income, has dwindled. For as long as anyone can remember, the tiny animals have overwintered in shimmering bubble nests perched atop blue willow trees, drawing tourists from far and wide. This year, however, not a single hummingbear has returned to Perchance, and no one knows why.When a handmade birthday gift brings unexpected magic to Willodeen and her new friend, Connor, she’s determined to speak up for the animals she loves, and perhaps even uncover the answer to the mystery of the missing hummingbears.

The Birds of Pandemonium


Michele Raffin - 2014
    A full symphony that swells from the most vocal of more than 350 avian throats representing more than 40 species. “It knocks me out, every day,” she says. Pandemonium, the home and bird sanctuary that Raffin shares with some of  the world’s most remarkable birds, is a conservation organization dedicated to saving and breeding birds at the edge of extinction, with the goal of eventually releasing them into the wild. In The Birds of Pandemonium, she lets us into her world--and theirs. Birds fall in love, mourn, rejoice, and sacrifice; they have a sense of humor, invent, plot, and cope. They can teach us volumes about the interrelationships of humans and animals. Their stories make up the heart of this book. There’s Sweetie, a tiny quail with an outsize personality; the inspiring Oscar, a disabled Lady Gouldian finch who can’t fly but finds a brilliant way to climb to the highest perches of his aviary to roost. The ecstatic reunion of a disabled Victoria crowned pigeon, Wing, and her brother, Coffee, is as wondrous as the silent kinship that develops between Amadeus, a one-legged turaco, and an autistic young visitor. As we come to know the individual birds, we also come to understand how much is at stake for many of these species. One of the aviary’s greatest success stories is breeding the gorgeous green-naped pheasant pigeon, whose home in the New Guinea rainforest is being decimated. Thanks to efforts at Pandemonium, these birds may not share the same fate as the now-extinct dodo.

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.

It Starts With a Seed


Laura Knowles - 2017
     As the tree grows, it is joined by well-loved woodland creatures—squirrels and rabbits, butterflies and owls—who make it their home. A rhyming poem builds page on page, echoing the rings of a growing tree. The story culminates with a foldout page showing a mature tree shedding seeds to continue the beautiful cycle of life. At the back, find the full poem and facts about the specific tree, a sycamore. Beautiful and evocative, It Starts With a Seed is a factual story that will touch children with its simple, enchanting message of life and growth. A 2018 Outstanding Science Trade Book for Students: K-12 (National Science Teachers Association and the Children's Book Council)

A Place for Turtles


Melissa Stewart - 2008
    Describing various examples, the text provides an intriguing look at turtles, at the ecosystems that support their survival, and at the efforts of some people to save them. At the end of the book, the author offers readers a list of things they can do to help protect these special creatures in their own communities.

Burt the Beetle Doesn't Bite!


Ashley Spires - 2021
    He's sure he belongs in the category of bugs with superpower-like abilities. No, he can't carry 50 times his weight, like ants. No, he's not able to spray paralyzing venom, like some termites. No, he can't release a bad smell to repel predators, like stink bugs. What june beetles are known for is chasing porch lights and flailing their legs in the air --- does that count? Hmm ... Maybe Burt will just have to accept the truth. June beetles don't have any special abilities. But when some other bugs find themselves in perilous trouble that even their superpowers can't get them out of, Burt suddenly realizes there is one thing that he can do to save his friends --- and it's something that only a june beetle can do!Bestselling author-illustrator Ashley Spires's signature mix of slapstick and dry humor is front and center in this winning story that highlights how being special is as much about character as it is about abilities. Full of simply drawn panels prominently featuring the ever-plucky Burt, it's a perfect pick for emerging readers and young fans of comics. Burt's positive attitude toward himself and others offers many opportunities for character education lessons on caring, positive thinking and initiative. Snuck into the pages are facts about bugs and their traits, making this a fun choice for a science unit on the characteristics of living things.

Winter Sleep: A Hibernation Story


Sean Taylor - 2019
    Spot the sleeping animals as the tale unfolds, then learn about their hibernation habits from the information pages at the end. Co-authors Sean Taylor (picture book author) and Alex Morss (ecologist, journalist, and educator) offer a gentle introduction to the concept of hibernation. In the frosty, quiet forest, the snow blankets the ground and the trees have shed their leaves. Where have all the animals gone? Are they asleep too? In each cutaway scene, see what the child cannot—that underground below his feet are dens with sleeping creatures, and within the hollow trunks of trees, animals are nesting. After the story, annotated illustrations explain the hibernation facts for each animal and what they will do when they wake up for spring. Cozy up as you expand you and your child's knowledge of the natural world.

Trout Are Made of Trees


April Pulley Sayre - 2008
    How can a leaf become a fish? Join two young children and their dads to find out, as they observe life in and around a stream.Energetic collage art and simple, lyrical text depict the ways plants and animals are connected in the food web.Back matter provides information about the trout life cycle as well as conservation efforts that kids can do themselves.It's a natural choice for Earth Day.