Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
With collage illustrations, Little Turtle and the Changing Sea by Becky Davies (illustrated by Jennie Poh; Little Tiger Press, 2021) emphasizes a turtle’s life cycle, with emphasis on the dangers of human pollution when the ocean changes one day. As the title suggests, the story highlights two different oceans. The first ocean turtle encounters, beginning
Life After Whale: The Amazing Ecosystem of a Whale Fall by Lynn Brunelle (illustrated by Jason Chin; Neal Porter Books, 2024) is a nonfiction picture book about the complete ecosystem that forms around a whale carcass on the bottom of the ocean. It begins with an elderly whale and in the first pages, the whale
I was unfortunately a little disappointed with oversized nonfiction picture book I Am Wind: An Autobiography by Rachel Poliquin (illustrated by Rachel Wada; Tundra, 2024). As the title indicates, this book teaches about wind with a first-person narration. Interspersed with the narration are side paragraphs (in a different font) that identify and name specific winds
Life in a Coral Reef by Wendy Pfeffer, illustrated by Steve Jenkins (a Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out, Stage 2, book) has colorful, textured collage illustrations that wonderfully match the child-friendly text. The text is written in present tense, which helps the reader feel present in the setting, among the tentacles of the sea anemone with the clown fish
The lovingly illustrated One Tiny Turtle by Nicola Davies (illustrated by Jane Chapman; Candlewick, 2005) combines just the right amount of rhythmic text, full page illustrations, and factual subtexts to immerse the reader into world of sea turtles. The picture book begins with a scientific note about turtles. Then, a story starts with a young
The uniquely illustrated picture book A Log’s Life by Wendy Pfeffer (illustrated by Robin Brickman; Simon & Schuster, 1997) shows the interconnectedness of ecosystems through the life of an oak tree. Three-dimensional collage illustrations bring the different creatures and textures to life in the illustrations. This picture book explains the cycle of decomposition with a
Seymour Simon’s nonfiction picture books have the bonus of being illustrated with full-color photographs. In his Coral Reefs (Harper Collins, 2013), the beauty of the coral reef is shown in the rich photos. Simon begins with a thorough discussion of various types of corals, along with images that show their distinct shapes and patterns. He
Follow the Moon Home: A Tale of One Idea, Twenty Kids, and a Hundred Sea Turtles by Phillippe Cousteau and Deborah Hopkinson (illustrated by Meilo So; Chronicle, 2016). Watercolor illustrations and friendly text with unique typography share the story of a child new to the area that spearheads a class project. The project, “Lights Out
The attractive read-aloud picture book This is the Reef by Miriam Moss (illustrated by Adrienne Kennaway; Lincoln Children’s Books, 2007) repeats the phrase “This is the place” as it visits a variety of plants and animals in the coral reef habitat. A few unique and specific animals, such as nudibranchs (a mollusk) and fish-eating flowers,
The nonfiction Keepers of the Reef by Dr. Sharon Wismer (illustrated by Alice Wong; Tillbury House, 2022) invites a young reader to visit the Great Barrier Reef to learn about a unique ecosystem. With a friendly “come on in!”, two children swim into a coral reef scene in this gorgeous book about the coral reef
With a focus on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, The Coral Kingdom by Laura Knowles (illustrated by Jennie Webber; words and pictures, 2018) introduces the basic animals of the coral reef with the colorful coral reef ecosystem as the highlight of the picture book’s pages. Rhyming couplets on each page help make the text
The fictionalized nonfiction picture book On Kiki’s Reef by Carol L. Malnor (illustrated by Trina L. Hunner; Dawn Publications, 2014) tells about the life cycle and habitat of a sea turtle named Kiki in the coral reef habitat. Parallel text appears on each page: one provides details about Kiki’s life (in a serif font), and
Page [tcb_pagination_current_page] of [tcb_pagination_total_pages]
