Once Upon a Forest written and illustrated by Pam Fong

 

Once Upon a Forest

written and illustrated by Pam Fong

Random House Studio, 2022, 40 pages

Forest fires are really scary and they seem to be happening with more and more frequency. Here is a wordless picture book that shows readers something they can do after a forest fire happens. It all begins when a little marmot, out watering his garden with his bird bestie, smells smoke in the distance. Leaving his home, the marmot goes exploring to find out where the smoke is coming from and discovers it is a forest fire.

After the fire is put out, the marmot loads up his wagon with gardening tools, and some of his own young saplings and heads into the forest with his bird friend. Saddened by the charred remains of trees and devastation he finds, the marmot quickly gets to work pulling the dead trees up, 

then clearing and raking the land to prepare it for new plants. As you can see, it doesn't take long for the soot from the fire to get all over the marmot. Pulling, raking and digging are hard work, but the two manage to finally plant some saplings, then pitch a tent to keep an eye out on things..  

They are there for the long haul and it's a good thing they are. As the saplings begin to take root and grow, they need water, protection from autumn wind, and later from winter's snow, and in spring, from hungry animals looking for some nice leafy greens.

But the trees grow and grown. Once they are strong and sturdy, the marmot and his bird friend return to their home, but just they are unpacking, it happens again - the smell of smoke is once more in the air. It looks like the help of our little environmental friends will once again be needed.

This is a charming story that shows young readers that they can do something to help an environment that has been laid waste through forest fires or any natural disasters. They can easily begin by planting a new tree at home in a small container for later replanting in a forest. But more than that, kids learn that they can participate in taking care of the nature world which is so important for it to thrive, especially if we want to enjoy it for years to come.  

Pam Fong has managed to convey all of that to us without writing a word, and instead by using detailed, grayscale illustrations that reflect the marmots thoughts and feelings, and by using a few color exceptions where they make all the difference, highlighting the green of the saplings, the blue of the stream where water for the plants is gotten and the marmot can wash away the soot that gets on his fur, and a golden cast as the day's work is done and the sun is setting. 

This is a perfect book to add to your Earth Day collection, and it is ideal for sharing as we enter another fire season with the coming summer months. There is much here for discussion and for generating ideas for caring for the earth.

Thanks you Barbara Fisch at Blue Slip Media for providing me with a copy of this book.

Four Books for Earth Day

This week we celebrate Earth Day for the 51st time. This year's theme, Restore the Earth, feels so timely as we begin to emerge from a world-wide pandemic and take time to look around to see what needs to be done. It just feels like the earth has been treated pretty badly the last few years, losing so many protections, and now, there is some work to be done so that we can live in harmony with the earth, her creatures, her plants and her waters. But first, it's important to educate ourselves and our children and here are a few books I have been sharing with my young readers.

Zonia's Rain Forest 

written and illustrated by Juana Martinex-Neal

Candlewick Press, 2021, 40 pages

Zonia, a young Asháninka living in the Peruvian Amazon's rain forest. Every morning, the rain forest beckons Zonia and she loves to walk through it, and visit all her old and new friends living there,  accompanied by a blue morpho butterfly. As she makes her rounds, Zonia greets a wide variety of creatures that also make their home in the rain forest - sloths, birds, jaguar, dolphins, a boa constrictor and turtles are just some of Zonia's friends. But one day, Zonia discovers something she's never seen before that truly frightens her - a part of the rain forest that has just been cut down and destroyed. Running home, Zonia tells her mother about it, who wisely responds that the forest is calling out for her help and Zonia vows to answer that call. Zonia's Rain Forest, written in such simple sentences, carries a big message for readers that they too can become activists and help to preserve earth's rain forests. Thee is some important back matter included that young readers should be made aware of, including an introduction to the Asháninka People, and A Few Facts about the Amazon, a list of Threats to the Amazon and a page devoted to all of Zonia's Friends (in order of appearance), followed by a list of links to resources. This is such an important book, not just for Earth Day but for every day. 

Reptiles Everywhere by Britta Teckentrup,

illustrated by Camilla de la Bedoyere

Big Picture Press/Candlewick Press, 2021, 32 pages

Did you know that reptiles have been around for more than 312 million years, that they swim, run, slither or glide, and that their size can range from as small at a thumbnail to more than 30 feet long? This is just a small fraction of the amount of reptilian information you will find in the book - and there are all kinds and they are everywhere. Young readers will learn just what a reptile is, whose been around the longest, what they eat and where they live. From reptile basics to how they have managed to stay around so long when other species have died out is covered, as is information about reptile babies, and the travels of a leatherback turtle from hatching in the sand to adult swimming in the depths of the ocean to returning to the sand and laying her own eggs is explored. There are reptiles hiding throughout the book and readers are challenged to find them. The book ends with a two page spread on Reptiles and People, which includes Reptiles At Risk. Yes, reptiles now need human help to survive and thrive - in other words, conservation. Suggestions for citizen science and volunteering are things that kids can do. And conservation has had reptile success, bringing back some that were on the verge of extinction. This is a fun and interesting book, with wonderful color illustrations, and an ideal companion for Earth Day projects. 

Masters of Disguise: Camouflaging Creatures &

Magnificent Mimics

by Marc Martin

Candlewick Studio, 2021, 56 pages

Two of the best ways an animal can protect itself are through camouflage and mimicry. In this lushly illustrated book are twelve different animals from around the world and the unique ways they each make themselves look like part of the environment they live in. From the panther chameleon living in  Madagascar and the polar bear in the Arctic Circle, to the owl butterfly of South and Central America, the gaboon viper of Africa, and the ornate wobbegong in the waters of the Pacific Ocean, each animal is given 2 double page spreads. The first two spreads includes short text bytes of information about them, perfect for curious young readers. Each of the text bytes are accompanied with several accurate illustrations showing the animal in their environment that complement each other perfectly. Turn the page and there is a densely illustration double page spread of the animals environment and a challenge to find what is hiding there. For example, there are 10 chameleons hiding in the lush foliage of a forest along with several other creatures. I found most, but not all (and it took a while, my young readers pretty much found the all - quickly). The book is slightly oversized and the page is just heavy enough to add to the richness of the illustrations, which are done with watercolor, pencil, and digital collage and are just spectacular. At the beginning of the book, the author points out that the unique habitats of each animal, and by extension, each animal, is under threat because of climate change and human activity, and reminds us that we can do things to protect them.  

A World of Plants by Martin Jenkins,

illustrated by James Brown

Candlewick Studio, 2021, 64 pages

The most important thing about plants, Jenkins writes, is that we are utterly dependent on them and what they do. And if we are so dependent on them, we should certainly know something about them and A World of Plants is a great place to begin. Here readers will find a wealth of information on 30 different topics beginning with photosynthesis, so necessary for food production to how plants produce the oxygen we breath. Each topic is given a 2-page spread that explains the subject in clear text and is accompanied with richly detailed illustrations. There is a section on seeds, including how they spread, the lives of plants and the different environments in which different kinds of plants thrive. I found the section on Ten Plants That Feed the World particularly interesting. These are the ten plants that produce the bulk of the world's food. I had never thought about this, yet when I saw the ten, I really wasn't surprised. Another topic I found interesting was Sacred and Symbolic Plants, some of which are often associated with healing and well-being, or the date-palm with its symbolic importance in Judaism and Christianity. Both religion have their origins in the desert of the Middle East, where dates grow. Jenkins ends his book with a section on Plants in Peril. Here he looks a 16 plants around the world that have been impacted by man activities resulting in habitat loss and climate change and are in danger of disappearing. 

You can find more information on Earth Day HERE and you can find a toolkit with suggestions for what children and adults can do HERE

I received these books from Candlewick Press in exchange for honest reviews. 

Bruno the Beekeeper: A Honey Primer written and illustrated by Aneta Františka Holasová

Bruno the Beekeeper: A Honey Primer

written and illustrated by Aneta Františka Holasová,

translated from the original Czech by Andrew Lass

Candlewick Press, 2021, 80 pages

There is something about bees and beekeeping that has always fascinated me. But since we have begun to hear so much about hive collapse and the dire predictions of what would happen if there were no bees to pollinate plants and flowers, my interest has grown. Bruno the Beekeeper is a book just right for kids who may be interested in bees, too.

It is the story of Bruno the bear beekeeper and his grandma, who helps him. The book begins with some basic bee facts, such as detailed drawings of bees and similar flying insects that will help kids sort through a world of lookalikes. This is followed by pages devoted to the worker bee, whose important role is hive maintenance and security, guarding the hive; the drone who keeps the hive stocked with bees by passing on sperm to the queen bee; and the queen, whose main job is to lay eggs that she then fertilizes with the sperm she received from the drone. There is also a detailed illustration for each bee showing their metamorphosis as well as a labeled anatomical closeup of each adult bee.

Also included in this section is a two page spread showing the hive a beekeeper uses and it parts, with a brief explanation of of what each part is and why it is needed, a two page spread showing the beekeeper's clothing, and a two page spread showing bee parasites and predators. 

Once these basics are understood, Bruno's beekeeping activities begin in Late Summer and Fall, which I thought was odd but once I read through this section, I understood why the author began here. This is when a good beekeeper like Bruno removes the supers and the honey frames that contain the honeycombs. These are cleaned of residue wax and put away for the winter, and all Bruno has to do until Spring is check that they bees are buzzing.

Come spring, Bruno reverses the process and supers up, putting the hives together. This is also the time when you might hear about bees swarming and a number of reasons why this happens is given.

Once summer comes, and the flowers are in bloom, honey making is in full swing and Bruno and grandma being harvesting the honey-filled combs using the honey extractor. When that is done, the honey is put into jar to be used and Bruno beings the yearly cycle all over again, beginning with taking apart the supers.

Bruno the Beekeeper is a interesting look at so many different aspects to beekeeping including all kinds of useful information about bees and their life cycle. I did find it a little disconcerting at first that Bruno is an anthropomorphized bear while grandma is an elderly woman, but the two work so well together that I quickly got past that and focused on their activities and the information at each step in the honey making process.

The writing may feel a little stiff at first, but remember, it was translated from the Czech into English, and there is a lot of technical information included which may account for that, but the translator did keep the humor of the original book. And it really isn't Bruno story as much as it is the story of bees and how we get honey. The author did the watercolor illustrations in various shades of honey browns and beiges with touches of humor throughout (check out the bee faces). 

All in all, this is a very nice STEM book, and one that you might want to consider including in your Earth Day library at home and/or in the classroom. There is much to be learned and appreciated in this picture book for older readers.

Be sure to check out the recipe for gingerbread cookies at the end of the book. They sound sooooo good!

This book is recommended for readers 7+

I received this book from Candlewick Press in exchange for an honest review.

Cast Away: Poems for Our Time by Naomi Shihab Nye

Cast Away: Poems For Our Time 

by Naomi Shihab Nye

Greenwillow Books, 2020, 159 pages

This collection of more than 80 free-verse poems about trash, litter, and the things we throw away by Naomi Shihab Nye, Poetry Foundations' Young People's Poet Laureate (2019-2021), is my new favorite Earth Day book. Maybe because I live in a big city that I love and that has a large population and a great number of tourists roaming around, I am aware of the amount of litter people carelessly drop on the streets, the subways or the piles of garbage that don't get collected because of events like strikes, snowstorms (see "Snow Covers All the Trash" pg 35), and hurricanes.

Nye is a committed collector of trash, picking up after other people as she travels around the world. In fact, she begins her book with two epigraphs, the first being perhaps the most fitting: "I couldn't save the world, / but I could pick up trash." Nye covers a wide variety of trash and litter topics ranging from the purely ecological to the commercial to the political. She has even found that some trash is gift worthy - like the red purse given to Nye by a woman picking through a trash bin outside a restaurant in London the becomes her favorite purse, or the found blue mitten with dots and the word Heroes! knitted into it that became a gift. On the other hand, some trash is overwhelming like the 37,000 abandoned mustard packets from McDonald's that Nye has found by herself.

Nye has divided up this book into five sections: Sweepings, Titters & Tatters, Odds & Ends, Willy-Nilly, and Residue.  Throughout this collection, however, she is imploring us to pay more attention to the world around us and our part in contributing to the vastness of waste we create. To that end, at the end of the book, Nye has included 10  Ideas for Writing, Recycling, Reclaiming. These are all ideas designed to help kids get acquainted with what our trash is doing to the world, like that big floating island of plastic in the Pacific Ocean. It's a world these children will inherit, but as Nye says "It's never too late to make things better. Understanding them more might help." (pg 151)

I have a lot of favorite poems in this book, but I would to share my #1 favorite with you here:

Click to Enlarge

But trash and litter are our problem and there is just so much to unpack in the poems included in this collection. Some don't think these are poems that will appeal to young readers, but I think that as they begin exploring them, they will find much that they can benefit from. Perhaps that next Jolly Rancher wrapper will make it into a trash bin instead of the sidewalk, or single use water bottles will be replaced with reusable bottles.

I'm sure now you can understand why I think this is an excellent choice to share with kids on Earth Day, April 22, 2020.

This book is recommended for readers age 10+
This book was an ARC received from the publisher, Greenwillow Books.

2020 marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. This year, it has gone digital. Find out what you can still do HERE

🌎Two Books for Earth Day, April 22, 2019

Earth Day is April 22nd and I would like to share two of my new favorite books that help kids learn to appreciate the earth and all its magnificence and to hopefully instill a desire to take care of it. First up is...

A Brief History of Life on Earth 

written and illustrated by Clémence Dupont

Prestel Junior, 2019, 76 pages

This history of the earth and its inhabitants unfolds over time in this accordion-style book, taking readers from the very beginning of earth's life 4.6 billion years ago when it was just a boiling hot ocean, through each period of growth and formation, past, for example, the now familiar Jurassic Period to the present day or Holocene Epoch and beyond. As readers turn the pages, they can explore each of the 16 ages in the earth's life and see what changes each contributed, including the formations of oceans, volcanoes, lands, forests, mountains, as well as life forms such as plants, fish, birds, insects, and animals (which would include mankind).

Each age has a paragraph long clear and coherent explanation describing that period, with simple, labeled illustrations on every page. The illustrations are done in a folk art style, and in soft earth tones to match each era.

Young readers will want to explore each page extensively, so be prepared for lots of questions. This is the kind of book that will lead many to want visit the nearest natural history museum for more understanding and subsequent continued readings of this wonderful book. The accordion-style unfolds to 26 feet, which just happens to be the same length as a triceratops. When the book is unfolded to its complete length, you really get the idea of how old the earth is and what a wonderful place of change and evolution it is, which makes the last page all that much more poignant and important - a single human standing on a glacier that is melting, asking the question of all readers "And what now?" The future of earth is in our hands and how we treat it now will determine its future.  Turn the unfolded book over and there is a timeline of earth's first 4.6 billion years. This is the book I have been using to introduce my young readers to Earth Day and its importance, but it's a book we will be going back to again and again. It is just that wonderful. 

Wilderness: Earth's Amazing Habitats by Mia Cassany,

illustrated by Marcos Navarro

Prestel Junior, 2019, 48 pages

Here is an oversized book that can go hand in hand with A Brief History of Life on Earth because life needs a habitat and this is the book that will tell all about the different kinds of habitats many of the earth's creatures call home. Here you can read about the 16 natural habitats covering only about 5% of earth's surface around the world, and each one is trying to save the animal and plant life that live in them from becoming extinct because of climate change, deforestation and human intervention. Begin your round-the-world journey of these habitats with a helpful map of the world showing just were each one is located, and, as Mia Cassany writes, "Welcome to the most stunning nature show on earth." 

And that is an understatement. Each two-page spread gives the name and location of the habitat being highlighted. Some are protected by the county in which are are located, others are national parks, or UNESCO World Heritage sites, chosen because they have plant and animals living in them that are unique to that area in particular, and the earth in general. Information specific to the location and type of animals there are covered with detailed illustrations that depict them in their natural environment. As you can see, the habitats are located in a wide variety of countries and climates. For example, habitats found in rain forests and other tropical locations may have very similar damp climates, but they also have very different plants and animals from each other. In contrast, the cacti in the dry Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley in Mexico is totally different, but they can survive a dry climate because of their ability to store their own water. On the other hand, the Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve is so big it has a diverse climate and that means a diverse animal and plant populations. 

The illustrations, as you can see, are magnificent, done in bright colors and chock full of big and small details for young readers to explore. Curious kids will appreciate the last 6 pages designed to help readers find out more about what is in each of the 16 natural environments illustrated. And, while Wilderness does not give in-depth information about each habitat and the life each supports, it is certainly a excellent stepping stone to more explorations.

I can't recommend these books highly enough for your young readers Earth Day celebrations and activities.  

To learn more about Earth Day and what you can do, be sure to visit the Earth Day Network

Four Picture Books that Celebrate Nature

Today is Earth Day all around the world and what better way to acknowledge a day set aside to support environmental protection than with these are four beautifully done picture books that celebrate nature.

Above and Below: Lift the Flaps to See Nature's Wonders Unfold

Text by Patricia Hegarty, illustrations by Hanako Chulow

Kane Miller, 2017, 22 pages, age 5+

Young readers can explore eight different animal habitats or ecosystems - the ocean, the rain forest, the north pole, a river, mountain caves, the African Savannah, cliff tops, and the forest - in this beautiful lift-the-flaps book. There is a short introduction to each ecosystem, followed by brief facts of the most common animals, insects, flora, and fauna found there at ground level. Lift the flap and you will discover what animals are usually found either above or below ground level, uncovering a world generally hidden from most of us. The flaps make this a fun interactive book and are a nice size for young hands, each one is the size of half a page, great for young hands and for further explorations. I used this book to introduce kids to a unit on ecosystems for Earth Day and they loved it, especially discovering what was under the flaps. The illustrations are both realistic and whimsical, and there is lots happening on each page, but not to the point of distraction. A lovely way to learn about the wider world around us.

Give Bees a Chance

word and picture by Bethany Barton

Viking BFYR, 2017, 40 pages, age 4+

The narrator of this book introduces the reader to his best friend Edgar. The two love all the same things except bees, Edgar just does not like bees, and especially not their stingers or sacs of venom, not after being stung (an event that is humorously depicted along). The narrator is crazy about bees, and begins a campaign to convince Edgar to change how he views bees, all 25,000 kinds of bees. Barton's illustrations may be characteristically cartoonish, but don't let that fool you. She has included a lot of information about bees throughout the book, including their anatomy, how a hive works, a nice two page spread about how honey is made (something I didn't know in detail), why they sting and how to get a bee to leave you along, their job as major pollinators, and how bees are disappearing in such large numbers. This is a book meant to introduce kids to bees, so read the Author's Note at the back, particularly readers who are already bee-lovers, and then, be sure to check out the end papers, front and back.

On the Wing by David Elliott

illustrated by Becca Stadtlander

Candlewick, 2014, 2017, 32 pages, age 4+

I keep returning to David Elliott's books about nature over and over again. From On the Farm, In the Wild, and In the Sea, my young readers learned about nature and poetry together. Now they can do the same with On the Wing. In this collection of 16 poems, Elliot celebrates a wide variety of birds. The poems range from playful to serious, but all catch the essence of each individual birds. Pair this with Elliott's other books to give young readers a nice rounded poetic picture of nature and its beauty in our world. Stadtlander's beautiful realistic gouache illustrations place each bird in to natural habitat, and extend the poetic mood. With only two exceptions, each bird/poem pairing is spread over a double page. Kids are sure to develop a beginning appreciation for the avian world after reading On the Wing.

A River 

written and illustrated by Marc Martin

Chronicle Books, 2017, 44 pages, age 4+

The narrator of this book is a young girl sits at her desk drawing when she looks out the window at the river flowing by outside. Seeing how it stretches out in the distance, the narrator begins an imaginary journey floating down the river in a silver boat. Floating through a busy. congested city, past factories and their dark, dirty smoke, moving through the countryside past farms, past a waterfall taller than a building, finally entering a jungle full of different vegetation and animals, on to the ocean  with its variety of fish, then into the midst of a powerful ocean storm, only to find herself back at her desk, her daydream shattered by the heavy rain outside her window. This is a nice book for introducing young readers to the different environments in the world. The colorful, dramatic illustrations are done in watercolor, gouache, pencil and digital collage, and both compliment and extend the simple observations made by the young girl on her journey. After reading A River, go back to the first page and see how many of the prompts you can find that were incorporated into the daydream. There is must to discover and discuss in this lovely book

The Blue Whale and The Polar Bear, two books written and illustrated by Jenni Desmond

April 22nd is Earth Day, but this year it is also a day to March for Science, to celebrate the vital role that science plays in our lives and in the wider world around us. Earth Day and March for Science are especially important now that their needed funding for research, development and education is being threatened. I would share two of my favorite science books about two species that are also threatened due to causes like habitat loss, climate change and toxins in the waters where blue whales swim, and the Arctic region where polar bears live.

Once upon a time...
a young boy takes a book off a shelf, and, lying on his bed wearing a red crown that looks suspiciously like those tissue paper crowns that come in Christmas crackers, he begins to read a book called The Blue Whale. And so do we...

Desmond's lovely meta-fiction picture book introduces readers to the magnificence of "the largest living creature on our planet," the blue whale, through factual information, comparisons, and stunning illustrations. Using simple and direct language, readers learn, for example, that the world's largest creature has a big 1,300 pound heart, actually the size of a small car; that blue whales can weight as much as 160 tons, about the same as 55 hippopotami.

A blue whale's anatomy would, of course, require it to be proportional to its size, and thus, it has a 6" eye, a 3 ton tongue, and a mouth so big 50 people could stand inside it. Not surprisingly, a full grown whale eats four tons of food per day, mainly krill, a shrimp-like sea creature. A baby blue whale can drink up to 50 gallons of its mother's milk everyday.

Desmond's text is only half the story, and her beautiful illustrations tell the rest of the tale. Done in a combination of collage, paint and color pencil, with a palette of predominantly ocean-worthy blues and whites, they offer readers an interesting mixture of realistic and imaginative images.

Be sure to read the Author's Note at the beginning of the book to better understand what she is trying to do with this book. There's lots more information throughout The Blue Whale, just waiting for a curious child to come along and begin reading.

Just as she did in The Blue Whale, Jenni Desmond begins this book with a young girl sporting a red crown pulling a book from a shelf, and who then curls up on a couch with her favorite stuffies and begins reading The Polar Bear. And so do we...

In this meta-fiction picture book, readers learn all about the polar bear, its anatomy, its habitat, what it hunts and likes to eat. Polar bears, also called sea bears, spend most of their life in the frozen Arctic regions of the world, and have a body that has adapted to the harsh conditions there. Two layers of fur, a tough hide and a thick layer of fat really helps, as do their very big paws, each about the size of a dinner plate, that help them hunt, dig, swim, and make pretty good snow shoes. They are large animals, though not nearly as large as a blue whale, but, Desmond writes, more like the length of two seven year-old kids.

Polar bears need to eat a lot, but don't have to eat every day. Their main food sources are seals, walrus', narwhals, and beluga whales and a polar bear will walk long distances in search of food. They usually eat about 40 seals a year. Interestingly, polar bears get their water from the seals fat, because sea water is too salty to drink. Unlike other bears, polar bears don't hibernate, but can sleep for long periods of time, especially in summer when ice melts and food is hard to find.

These are just some of the interesting facts that Desmond shares with readers about the life of polar bears. And just as she did with The Blue Whale, Desmond lets the illustrations tell half the story. The mixed-media illustrations are done in combination of paint, crayon, color pencil, in a palette that is more versions of mainly icy blues and winter whites than I would have imagined possible.

Be sure to read the Author's Note at the beginning of this book to learn about the dangers faced by polar bears from the environment and from man. These beautiful bears are a very vulnerable and threatened species.

Both The Blue Whale and The Polar Bear are imaginative and informative at the same time. Each book succeeds in two ways - they celebrate reading nonfiction and they educate readers about an threatened creature. The presence of the young readers in places where they would not ever be found adds a fanciful note to these otherwise factual narratives, carrying a lovely message about how you can get lost in a good book. And these are two books that my young readers got very lost in.

These books are recommended for readers age 5+
These books were purchased for my personal library

April 22, 2017 is Earth Day

Earth Day 2016

Today is Earth Day 2016 and I thought I would share some favorite books that we have been reading this year.

Go, Little Green Truck by Roni Schotter, pictures by Julia Kuo

Farrar Straus and Giroux, 2016

32 pages, age 4-6

Little Green is a happy little pickup truck, he's strong and sturdy and loves helping Farmer Gray do farm chores, until one day he is replaced by a big new shiny blue pickup.  Now, Big Blue does all the things Little Green used to do and Little Green is put out to pasture.  But Farmer Gray's daughter Fern misses Little Green and convince her dad to refurbish him.  He's given a new engine that uses corn and soy oil to run, and Fern spruces his body up with some painted flowers, fruits and animals and Little Green is back in service - beautifully recycled and environmentally friendly.  

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

Random House, 1971

45 pages, age 6-9

The Lorax was published only a year after the first Earth Day and carries a strong message of what happens when corporations greedily use the earth's natural resources with abandon.  The Once-ler tells the story of what happened to the land of the Lorax when he arrived there and chopping down all the trees to mass produce Thneeds.  As the land became more and more polluted, everyone had to move away and pretty soon there were no more trees left to cut down, the air was dirty, and the name desolate.  There is hope at the end in the form of a tree seed, though.  This is a great book for teaching kids about caring for the environment, and even though a lot has been done, there is still more to do.
Visit The Lorax Project for some ideas for teaching The Lorax and for getting kids involved in helping to save the earth.

Water Runs Through This Book by Nancy Bo Flood, 

photographs by Jan Sonnenmair

Fulcum Publishing, 2015

64 pages, age 8-12

If we didn't appreciate the power of water before the water tragedy in Flint, Michigan, we do now. To me, there is nothing quite as wonderful as a cold glass of water, until it isn't there anymore.  In this book, Nancy Bo Flood takes the reader on a round-the-world tour of the wonders of water using prose, poetry and stunning photographs and each page reminds the reader of why water is so important to life.  At the end of the book, there are suggestions for actions that young (and old) readers can do at home and at school.  There is a list of resources and a nice glossary.  Nancy's most important message in this book - always be grateful for the water we have.  If you read only one book this Earth Day, consider this one, after all, water is the source of all life.

Outside: A Guide to Discovering Nature by Maria Ana Peixe Dias, 

Inés Teixeira do Rosráio, and

Bernardo P. Carvalho

Frances Lincoln, 2016

368 pages, age 8-12

This is another of my favorite books this year.  The subtitle is "With more than 100 plants and animals, plus an introduction to weather, geology, and the night sky."  What better way to help young readers learn to appreciate the earth than with hand-on activities they can do no matter where they live.  The illustrations are rather minimal, with few colors but they are still spot on.  This is a great resource book as well as a great activity book and would be ideal for introducing kids to the natural sciences.  I can remember my Kiddo exploring nature in the park and at the beach and a book like this is just what she needed but didn't have.  It's a hefty volume but its packed full of good stuff.  

Earth Day is 46 years old now, and there is still so much that needs to be done.  Curious about what you and your Kiddos can do?  Check out the Earth Day Tookkit to learn how to take matters into your own hands!