Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
Over in the Ocean in the Coral Reef by Marianne Berks, illustrated by Jeanette Canyon (Dawn Publications, 2021) imitates the “Somewhere in the Meadow” song using the Great Barrier Reef as a setting.The subtitle is “A beach baby animal habitat book.” It follows a counting pattern, mentions a variety of animals, and is available in
Jason Chin’s illustrations in Coral Reefs: A Journey Through an Aquatic World Full of Wonder (Square Fish, 2016) create an imaginative story of a girl reading this same book and being swept away in an actual coral reef ecosystem. I love the creative illustrations and the details shown in the text. It is a gorgeous
In the Woods: An Adventure for Your Senses by Mariona Tolosa Sisteré (OwlKids Books, September 2023) is the in action tale of a family going on a walk in the woods. With bright paintings to show the action, parent and child dialogue tell of the smells, sights, sounds, and textures that the children and grownups
A year in the life of a two-year-old beaver is the story frame in the nonfiction picture book What Goes On Inside a Beaver Pond? by Becky Cushing Gop, illustrated by Carrie Shryock (Storey Publishing, September 2023). She leaves her childhood lodge in the Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary along the Yokun River (a real place
Ecomazes by Roxie Munro (Sterling, 2010) lets us learn about ecosystems while doing mazes! In her “12 Earth Adventures,” she illustrated 12 unique habitats with their own landscapes. Each page has a subtle story of trying to get from here to there and also a list of the flora and fauna to look for on
In I See a Kookaburra by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page (Houghton Mifflin, 2005), the authors show six unique habitats with eight animals. With first a two-page spread showing animals in the habitat and then a spread introducing the unique animals, the book becomes a seek-and-find book as the reader looks for the named animals
Meerkat Moves Out of the Desert by Nikki Potts, illustrated by Maarten Lenoir (Picture Window Books, 2020), gives a specific animal a dilemma: she’s tired of her habitat and would like to try something new. With a cartoon meerkat layered on top of photographic textures and scenes, this book provides an interesting contrast between Meerkat’s
Wild Zoo Train by Carmela Lavigna Coyle, illustrated by Steve Gray (Muddy Books, 2017), does not attempt to be a serious nonfiction text about biomes. However, for young students’ introduction to the concept, it would work well to engage the young reader to understand that there are unique biomes in the world, including the North
Habitat Spy by Cynthia Kieber-King, Illustrated by Christina Ward (Sylvan Dell Publishing, 2011), introduces a variety of habitats with an illustrated snapshot of a scene, accompanied by a simple, personable rhyming text. Each page features text overlayed in a binocular-shaped text bubble, with an image of a child looking through binoculars right next to it.
The Nature Girls by Aki (Godwin Books, 2019) features a group of sixteen girls who explore various biomes of the earth. Each two-page spread shows cartoon-illustrated landscapes paired with rhyming couplets. Brief lines on each spread do not share many informational details, but it makes a nice read-aloud for younger children. The end matter shares
Many Biomes, One Earth by Sneed B. Collard III, illustrated by James M. Needham (Charlesbridge, 2008) gives a general overview of biomes on earth, explaining clearly the differences between a biome and a habitat and explaining why earth’s biomes may not look as they originally were before human intrusions. As he describes the various terrestrial
The fictional middle graphic novel Global by Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin (Sourcebooks Young Readers, April 2023) addresses the effect of global climate change by illustrating two unique children in opposite situations on the other side of the globe. While Yuki faces a grolar bear (half grizzly and half polar bear) in the Arctic circle,
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