Three children’s books that would be fabulous additions to any school or home library are “I Am Temple Grandin” by Brad Meltzer and Christopher Eliopoulos, “The Outdoor Scientist: The Wonder of Observing the Natural World” by Temple Grandin, and “Calling All Minds: How to Think and Create Like an Inventor” by Temple Grandin. The first book is engaging and explains how being different is not a bad thing, and actually can be very special. The other two books are for exploration and activities that kids might want to do. Not a bad choice with summer vacations coming up because they are filled with information and ideas for great projects!
Nonfiction picture books for children are a great way to introduce information to kids about the world around them in a very digestible manner with vocabulary that’s just right for them to understand. This group of nonfiction picture books about animals and plants is for a range of ages. Two books are a part of the “Meet Your World” series. One is “You Are a Honey Bee!” and the other is “You Are a Raccoon!” for young readers who will enjoy the book’s physical suggestions to move like those animals. “Stinkbird Has a Superpower” is about a hoatzin, an Amazon bird that lives in the rain forest. This picture book is filled with information but also with lots of humor that will engage young readers and cause them to want to read and reread this adorably illustrated book. “A Home for Every Plant: Wonders of the Botanical World” is a large, information-filled book about plants from all over the world. “Whale Fall: Exploring an Ocean-Floor Ecosystem,” begins with a sad event, the death of a seventy-year-old whale, but then we learn about how that death goes on to nourish other creatures for half a century. “Cicada Symphony” is all about the cicadas we see every summer, and this colorful book is chock-full of information. “We Are Starlings: Inside the Mesmerizing Magic of a Murmuration” is filled with stunning watercolor illustrations of the birds and the fantastic and beautiful shapes they make as they fly together, as the story is told in first person plural, the band of starlings to fly together so amazingly. And three books in the “Save the…” series are about blue whales, frogs, and giraffes, and would be great informational texts for a classroom.
Perhaps the threat of certain books being banned makes it even more important that those books be shared and read. Two books that certainly fit the bill are “That Flag” by Tameka Fryer Brown and Nikkolas Smith and “Love is Loud: How Diane Nash Led the Civil Rights Movement” by Sandra Neil Wallace and Bryan Collier. While the books are very different—one is a very touching story about the Confederate flag and its effect on the friendship of two girls, while the other is a nonfiction account of a valiant woman whom few have heard of. Both are books about topics that would certainly damage the fragile sensibilities of those who cringe at any reference to our racist past and our often-uncomfortable current racist reality.
In his second book in the Logan Foster series, “The Unforgettable Logan Foster and the Shadow of Doubt,” author Shawn Peters asks readers to consider the power of actual strength, as in super strength, versus the power of the mind. The main character, Logan Foster, starts his narrative by explaining that while he is “a twelve-year-old orphan living on the Westside of Lost Angeles,” he’s halfway through high school because he has an eidetic memory. He tells us, “I’ve retained every word, sound, and image that I’ve seen or heard since I was three.” He also makes it clear that he is writing this narrative for his younger brother, whom he is hoping to find and with whom he hopes to be reunited.
While “Leeva at Last,” written by Sara Pennypacker and illustrated by Matthew Cordell, is written with plenty of hyperbole and shows exaggerated cruelty worthy of Roald Dahl’s “Matilda,” at heart this is a beautiful, thoughtful story of standing up for truth and doing the right thing. It’s also a story about the importance of books and reading, and as celebrated children’s author Gary Paulsen shared about his childhood, how books and reading can literally save the life of an abused and neglected child, as it did for him.
If there were an award for best first sentence ever in a novel (and maybe there is), Stuart Gibbs deserves it for the beginning of “Whale Done”: “I would never have seen the whale explode if a kangaroo hadn’t burned down my house.” I’m embarrassed to admit that this eighth book is the first I’ve read in the very popular FunJungle series. I’m always hesitant to jump in and start reading in the middle of a series, but I should have learned with his Spy School novels, which I started reading several books into the series, that Gibbs always provides enough backstory that there’s no need to start at the beginning.
I first became acquainted with Michael Rex’s work when I read and reviewed his clever picture book, “Facts vs. Opinions vs. Robots.” I loved using that book with my students, teaching them about the difference between facts and opinions. So when I read his latest endeavor, “Your Pal Fred,” I had high expectations. This graphic novel did not disappoint, and to be honest, that surprised me. You see, many graphic novels confuse me. I get bewildered by those with many characters who all seem—at least to my senior eyes—to look somewhat alike. I did not have that problem with “Your Pal Fred” as each character is clearly and cleverly delineated. It’s very clear who each of the characters are and what they represent. The dialogue and the illustrations make this story about friendship and kindness accessible and enjoyable to read.
The “City Spies” series showcases James Ponti’s impressive writing style, and the latest entry in the series, “City of the Dead,” is no exception. Ponti jumps in with fast-paced action almost immediately. After a brief foray into the past, when the most famous tomb, that of the boy king, Tutankhamen, was found by a 12-year-old Egyptian boy, we jump into the present day as a group of kids is attempting to break into the British Museum.
Two recently released nonfiction picture books, “Amazing Animals Around the World” and “Amazing Insects Around the World” entranced both me and my six-year-old grandson. To be honest, I wasn’t sure of his reaction because while he does love nonfiction books about animals, even those aimed at adult readers, these books don’t have photographs but rather simple, muted illustrations of the animals and insects. It didn’t matter. Once he opened the books and saw the plethora of unusual animals (some of which I had never heard of in my rather long life), he was hooked. In fact, in the ultimate sign of approval, he didn’t want to give them back to me.
Many children know the feeling of not fitting in and in “The Midnighters,” author Hana Tooke explores that feeling through her main character, Ema, whose fantastic, incredibly dangerous journey in this novel finally leads to her finding acceptance and respect. Ema was born into a family of scientists, and while she absorbed much of their knowledge, she didn’t feel their passion. What she felt instead was dread, and that feeling made her feel different than the rest of her siblings and her parents. She seemed to know when bad things were going to happen, and the number twelve was an especially dangerous number in her eyes.
Two books published in 2022 that on the surface seem quite different, but share an important theme, are “Attack of the Black Rectangles” by Amy Sarig King and “Island of Spies” by Sheila Turnage. Both are about children who are determined to deal with problems that they are told are best left to adults. One of the books is about censorship and speaking out for what is right; the other is a WWII historical fiction in which kids are told they have nothing to contribute even as spies come ashore and ships are sunk on the east coast of the US by German submarines. In both novels, we meet kids who are strong and not afraid to speak out against wrongdoing. We see adults who want to shield the children from unpleasantness only to find that the children are determined to understand the truth and deal with it. We see girls being underestimated and adults who think only they know best. The children know otherwise. Both books are inspiring, and both definitely deserve a place in every library and classroom bookshelf.
In her newest novel, “Odder,” we see why children’s writer Katherine Applegate is a Newbery medalist and New York Times bestselling author—it’s because her writing touches readers’ hearts, fills us with emotion, and often shows us a new way of observing the world around us. In “Odder,” we meet a sea otter whose antics fill us with happiness as she dances and twirls and dives joyfully in her ocean environment. At the same time, we glimpse the danger that otters face, and the greater danger that imperiled them in the past—humans. Now, aside from terrible storms, their greatest foes are hungry sharks.
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