Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
Fungus is Among Us! by Joy Keller (Innovation Press, 2019) has a fictional and rhyming story-line that follows a girl walking in a forest and through her home. Throughout her walk, she learns about all the fungus that is in her life. This includes mushrooms, moss, mold on old food and on shower walls (ewwww).
The non-fiction picture book One Night in the Coral Sea by Sneed B. Collard III (illustrated by Robin Brickman; Hyperion, 2006) tells about the yearly spawning of coral. Brickman’s three-dimensional painted paper illustrations make this book stand out in the pile. But also Collard’s detail about the mass spawning of the coral in the world
Living Things and Nonliving Things: A Compare and Contrast Book by Kevin Kurtz (Arbordale Publishing, 2017) is an early nonfiction picture book for the youngest readers. It features real photographs and minimal text with lots of nonfiction facts about what makes living things different from nonliving things. Lots of white space and bright, up-to-date illustrations
How Mountains Are Made by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfelt (illustrated by James Graham Hale; Harper Collins, 1995) is a Lets-Read-and-Find-Out book (Level 2). The books in this picture book informational science series are sometimes uneven, but this one hits the mark for teaching many concepts with a friendly frame. In How Mountains Are Made, the facts
Courage Like Kate: The True Story of a Girl Lighthouse Keeper by Anna Crowley Redding (illustrated by Emily Sutton; Random House 2022) is based on the true story of Kate Moore, the first official female lighthouse keeper. In order to help her father, young Kate takes care of the lighthouse for him. Illustrations are created
With a rhythm and rhyme of just a few syllables per page, Bloom Boom by April Pulley Sayre (Beach Lane Books, 2019) provides not just a simple read-aloud for young children but also a great book of inspiration for finding flowers and other blooming plants that one enjoys. This book of flower photography is a
Oscar and the Bird: A Book about Electricity by Geoff Waring (Candlewick Press, 2011) has a fictional frame for an otherwise instructional book about electricity basics. The fictional animal characters makes an otherwise difficult concept easy to approach. When Oscar the cat accidently turns on the windshield wipers on the tractor, a bird explains to
As the title suggests, Fungi Grow by Maria Gianferrari (illustrated by Diana Sudyka; Beach Lane Books, 2023) is a nonfiction picture book focusing on the growth, spread, and purpose of fungi through the world. With realistic illustrations, a variety of fonts, and both a storyline and sidebar facts, this picture book provides a welcome and
Because of an Acorn by Lola and Adam Schaefer (Chronicle Books, 2016; illustrated by Fran Preston-Gannon) has pretty pictures and simple text to show the connection between an acorn growing and the other types of life surrounding it. Birds, fruit, deer, chipmunks, and other animals all are able to live. They also contribute to adding
Dive In: Swim with Sea Creatures at Their Actual Size by Roxie Munro (Holiday House, 2020) is a large nonfiction picture book about the coral reef ecosystem. Munro illustrates the variety of animals to be found there, with the main teaser being that these illustrations are actual sized, from tiny seahorses to reef sharks. With
The nonfiction picture book My Light by Molly Bang (Blue Sky Press, 2004) is narrated by the sun and covers many topics in elementary science. The influence of the sun is woven into explanations about the power of the great star into the water cycle and so much more. The water’s movement and the warm
With a contrast between dull colors and vibrant and bright colors, the children’s picture book biography The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky’s Abstract Art by Barb Rosenstock (illustrated by Mary Grandpre; Knopf, 2014) introduces kids to the delightfully unique art of Russian artist Vasily Kandinsky. Abstract art in general might be
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