Category: Picture Book

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Today’s book recommendation:🔥THE FIRE OF STARS: The Life and Brilliance of the Woman Who Discovered What Stars Are Made Of by Kirsten W. Larson

Illustrated by Katherine Roy

Published by Chronicle Books

📚 Nonfiction Picture Book Biography

The Fire of Stars by Kirsten W. Larson

This STEM biography is a major award winner! It is exceptionally crafted and beautifully illustrated! I absolutely love how author Kirsten W. Larson manages to tell two stories at once with her lovely, poetic text.

Here’s the official BOOK PROMO:

*****
Astronomer and astrophysicist Cecilia Payne was the first person to discover what burns at the heart of stars. But she didn’t start out as the groundbreaking scientist she would eventually become. She started out as a girl full of curiosity, hoping one day to unlock the mysteries of the universe.

With lyrical, evocative text by Kirsten W. Larson and extraordinary illustrations by award-winning illustrator Katherine Roy, this moving biography powerfully parallels the kindling of Cecilia Payne’s own curiosity and her scientific career with the process of a star’s birth, from mere possibility in an expanse of space to an eventual, breathtaking explosion of light.
*****

This book encourages curiosity and a love of science on every page, along with gorgeous swirls of stardust, sparks of color, and heartfelt moments in Cecilia’s journey through life.

⭐ Perfect for kids who love space, science, and stories of trailblazing women.
⭐ A beautiful blend of STEM and storytelling.
⭐ Inspiring for classroom use or bedtime brilliance.

Have you read this starry gem yet? 💫 Drop a 🌟 in the comments if you love space books!

Happy reading!

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Today’s book recommendation: LITTLE RED HENRY by Linda Urban; Illustrated by Madeline Valentine

– Picture Book

This sweet little story turns the tale of The Little Red Hen on its head. Instead of a hen who has to do everything herself because her friends are too lazy, Henry has an extraordinarily loving family who can’t help themselves from doing every little thing for him.

Here’s the official BOOK PROMO:

*****
Little redheaded Henry’s family treats him like a baby. They dress him. They feed him. They brush his “widdle toofers.” But he’s not a baby anymore. He’s a little boy who wants to do things for himself. So with his family watching anxiously from the wings, Henry sets out on a glorious day of independence. But will things swing too far in the other direction? In this charming reworking of the classic tale of the Little Red Hen, author Linda Urban and illustrator Madeline Valentine gently and humorously depict a family trying to find a middle ground between hovering over their youngest member and giving him room to grow.

*****

The need for independence is real–especially for little ones! Almost as soon as my son could talk, I remember him saying “Me do it!” to every little thing.

But as his mom, it was tricky to step back. I was his mom! He needed me! 🙂

That’s what makes this book so humorous–it’s altogether too relatable, for parents and for kids!

Plus, the illustrations! Madeline Valentine’s delightful cartoon-style pictures add so much to this fun tale. I just love little redheaded, bespectacled Henry, and I died laughing at the spread where the whole family was listless and without purpose because they couldn’t do everything for Henry anymore!

Happy reading!

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Today’s book recommendations:

BUTT OR FACE? CAN YOU TELL WHICH END YOU’RE LOOKING AT?
by Kari Lavelle

-and-

BATTLE OF THE BUTTS: THE SCIENCE BEHIND ANIMAL BEHINDS
by Jocelyn Rish

– Nonfiction Picture Books

If you have kids who enjoy potty humor, then have I got the books for you! We picked these up at the same time and it made for a combination that had the whole family dying with laughter.

Did you know that some animals disguise their rumps? Or that manatees control their buoyancy with flatulence? If they want to move up in the water, they hold it in, and if they want to sink, they let it rip!

Here are snippets of the official BOOK PROMOs:

*****
✒ Butt or Face? offers kids a delightfully cheeky challenge: examine a close-up photo of an animal, and then guess whether you’re looking at the top or the…um…bottom. The answer is revealed on the next page with a complete photo of the animal! Readers will discover animals like the Cuyaba dwarf frog whose backside looks like a pair of eyes, the Mary River turtle that breathes through its butt, and many more!

✒ Battle of the Butts
Butts are used for breathing, eating, swimming, talking, and even killing in the animal kingdom. Focusing on ten different animals and their derrières, and offering fun facts about their origin, habitat, and “posterior power,” this hilarious book captures the wonder of our ecosystem. Which animal has the coolest butt power? That’s up to you to decide!
*****
Humorous nonfiction like this is the perfect way to learn about the amazing world around us. And there’s nothing like unique animals and their surprising abilities to give a book instant kid appeal!

Snuggle up with these books and prepare to giggle. 🤣

Happy reading! 📚

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Today’s book recommendation: LOVE, SOPHIA ON THE MOON by Anica Mrose Rissi

  • SEL (Social Emotional Learning) Picture Book

There’s no doubt about it: little people have BIG feelings, and they often don’t know quite how to handle them.

In LOVE, SOPHIA ON THE MOON, Sophia is no different. This beautiful picture book, illustrated by Mika Song, does such a good job of showing how to honor those feelings while helping the child through them with gentle love and humor.

Here’s the official BOOK PROMO:

*****
Life on Earth isn’t always fair, so Sophia runs off to the moon, where there are no bedtimes, no time-outs, and no Mom.

But as Sophia and her mom send letters to each other, Mom has a clever comeback for all of Sophia’s angry notes. Home starts to sound not-quite-so-bad, especially when Mom reports that someone from the moon has moved in to Sophia’s old room, they’re having spaghetti for dinner, and they’re reading Sophia’s favorite story at bedtime.

*****

This book has so much heart! I really love how the whole thing is written in letters back and forth between Sophia and her mom. Rissi does such a great job of allowing the subtext to shine through, despite what is actually said.

This is one you’re going to want to curl up in a soft blanket and read again and again.

Happy reading!

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Today’s book recommendation: FLOWER TALK: HOW PLANTS USE COLOR TO COMMUNICATE by Sara Levine – Nonfiction Picture Book

This is one of my all-time favorite picture books! While you will find it shelved with nonfiction, technically, it’s “informational fiction” because it is narrated by an adorable little cactus with a prickly attitude!

No matter how you categorize it, FLOWER TALK is both informational and highly entertaining!

Here’s the official BOOK PROMO:

*****
Pssssst! Did you know plants can talk?

It’s true! Plants use the colors of their flowers to communicate with animals. But why animals? Because they help plants make seeds by moving pollen from one flower to another. Learn the secrets of flower talk from a narrator with an inside scoop!

This new book from Sara Levine features a cantankerous talking cactus as a narrator, revealing to readers the significance of different colors of flowers in terms of which pollinators (bees, bats, birds, etc.) different colors “talk” to. A fun nonfiction presentation of science info that may be new to many kids―and adults!
*****

The voice in this book is brilliant and makes for SUCH a fun read-aloud! And the illustrations! I can’t tell you how much I love them!! Masha D’yans manages to make the little cactus guy so adorable and so cranky, all at the same time. I love her gorgeous, whimsical style.

Do yourself a favor and pick up this book today!

Happy reading!

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Today’s book recommendation: SECRETS OF THE SEA: The Story of Jeanne Power, Revolutionary Marine Scientist by Evan Griffith – Nonfiction Picture Book Biography

I absolutely LOVE picture book biographies. There have been so many amazing people in the world and well-done picture book biographies capture the essence of their lives and achievements so beautifully!

Secrets of the Sea is no exception! Jeanne Power was a courageous and creative woman from the 19th century who went from being a respected Parisian dressmaker to a famous marine scientist.

At this time, pretty much everything scientists knew about sea creatures was from studying dead specimens. Jeanne came up with the idea of building her own aquarium to study marine life while they were alive, and she made many exciting discoveries!

Evan Griffith made impressive discoveries of his own during his thorough research for this book, and Joanie Stone’s illustrations really made it all come to life. I’d never heard of a paper nautilus before, but my boys and I went on a little research binge about them after reading this book.

It’s the perfect book to read to be inspired by creative problem solving and overcoming trials. Pick it up today and give it a try!

Happy reading!

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Today’s book recommendation: CAVES by Nell Cross Beckerman – Nonfiction Picture Book

This debut picture book by Nell Cross Beckerman, with illustrations by Kalen Chock, is absolutely stunning!

Kids are, of course, fascinated by caves, but this book isn’t just informational, Beckerman’s text invites the reader in, making them feel like real cave explorers and Chock’s gorgeous illustrations are dying to be explored!

The question to the reader of “Do you dare?” reminded me of THE BERENSTAIN BEARS AND THE SPOOKY OLD TREE, probably because I read it like a million times to all my kids when they were little, and it’s still one of our favorites!

The premise works in both books equally well. Curious readers and future spelunkers, alike, experience the thrill of adventure as they turn each page to peek into unbelievable caves found around the world, like the Glowworm Grotto in the Waitomo Caves in New Zealand.

This book came out in 2022 and won all kinds of awards, for good reason! I highly recommend!

Happy reading!

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Today’s book recommendation: FINDING WINNIE: THE TRUE STORY OF THE WORLD’S MOST FAMOUS BEAR by Lindsay Mattick – Nonfiction Picture Book 

Winnie the Pooh is such an adorable, lovable character, and until I read FINDING WINNIE, I had no idea he was based on an actual bear! And it’s an absolutely charming story.

Basically, a veterinarian from Winnipeg enlisted in the military and by chance, while stopping at a train station, came across a trapper with a bear cub on a leash. The trapper had killed the bear’s mother and didn’t want the cub. The vet bought the bear for $20 and named it Winnipeg. Everyone at the army post called the bear “Winnie” for short, but then, when they had to ship overseas, the vet arranged for Winnie to stay at the zoo.

Now, because Winnie was so tame, and because this was over 100 years ago, the zoo allowed children to play with him! One of the kids was no other than Christopher Robin! His father, A. A. Milne, watched them play and used them for inspiration for all the stories that the world knows and loves today. How cool is that?

The illustrations by Sophie Blackall won this book a Caldecott Medal and the author, Lindsay Mattick, is actually the great granddaughter of the vet!

She writes the book as a story in a story, where she is telling the story to her son, who is the vet’s namesake. This structure is difficult to do in a picture book, where you have such limited space, but Mattick pulls it off beautifully. The real photographs of Winnie with the soldiers and with Christopher Robin are such a treasure, too!

The same year that FINDING WINNIE came out (2015), so did WINNIE: THE TRUE STORY OF THE BEAR WHO INSPIRED WINNIE-THE-POOH by Sally M. Walker! Basically, that’s a writer’s worst nightmare to have the story you’ve been researching and laboring over for years go out with a different publisher at the exact same time, but I think the world is better off with both of these versions.

The story is much the same, but there’s more fun details and photographs that you wouldn’t know from just the one. The illustrations by Jonathan D. Voss are beautiful as well.

Whether you’re a fan of Winnie the Pooh, or not, these stories are fascinating pieces of history that are definitely worth checking out.

Happy reading!

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Today’s book recommendation: THE YEAR OF THE DOG by Grace Lin – Middle Grade Fiction

You might be familiar with author/illustrator Grace Lin from when her middle grade book, WHERE THE MOUNTAIN MEETS THE MOON, won the Newbery Honor in 2010 for its contribution to children’s literature. And it is a beautiful book! It reads like a Chinese fairytale adventure story with Lin’s own beautiful full-color illustrations along the way.

Lin is truly talented and has many not-to-be-missed reads, like her very first book, THE UGLY VEGETABLES, or her delightful chapter book, LING & TING: NOT EXACTLY THE SAME. But my very favorite of all is her middle grade debut, THE YEAR OF THE DOG.

This heartwarming book is truly a must read! The main character is a young Taiwanese-American girl who begins the books celebrating the Chinese New Year with her family. Since it is the Year of the Dog, her mother explains that this is the year she should try to find herself.

And that’s exactly what the book’s about. As the year progresses, Pacy navigates family and friendship dynamics, all while working to discover who she is, what she values, and what she’s good at. Because there are very few Asians where Pacy lives, it is often extra challenging as she faces unintentional (but hurtful) microaggressions along the way that are heartbreaking and eye-opening. (Click on the images below for examples.)

I loved the intergenerational aspect to the storytelling with her parents’ and grandparents’ stories within stories and the cute little doodle-like illustrations scattered throughout. Lin’s humor is spot on, too. There were many times where I laughed out loud!

This is an earlier middle grade novel, designed for 8-10 year olds, and while that’s the perfect age, it really is enjoyable for any age. I read it to my boys when they were that age and every day they begged for more.

If you are new to Grace Lin’s beautiful books, I encourage you to give her a try!

Happy reading!

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Today’s book recommendation: A DINOSAUR NAMED RUTH: HOW RUTH MASON DISCOVERED FOSSILS IN HER OWN BACKYARD by Julia Lyon – Nonfiction Picture Book

Do you know any kids who love dinosaurs? How would they feel if they found real dinosaur bones right in their own backyard!? Well, that’s what happened to Ruth Mason, only she didn’t know what they were at first!

This is an incredible true story that took place in South Dakota in 1905. I love the beautiful illustrations by Alexandra Bye and that the story is about a girl! Girls can love dinosaurs and paleontology, just as much as boys!

This is a great book to give as a gift or pickup for your own collection.

Happy reading!