NOVEMBER: NON-FICTION MONTH!

 My participation as a CYBILS AWARDS Round One panelist this year encompasses TWO categories, both NONFICTION. We're well underway with reading and discussion and there's much more to come before the finalist in my ELEMENTARY and MIDDLE GRADE categories will be announced on January 1, 2022. We're engaging in  close reads and evaluations of more than one hundred titles. At least I had a head start on some of the nominated titles in blog posts from earlier this years. 

Here are just a few to get me started on sharing some of the entertaining and informative picture books that are under consideration. 

When nominations opened on October first I had already scheduled a reveiw of the delightful SEA LIONS IN THE PARKING LOT: Animals on the Move in the Time of Pandemic, written by Lenora Todaro and illustrated by Annika Siems.

Todaro is an ecological writer/activist/guide who shares her thoughts about this new book in a brief interview that deserves a careful listen, HERE.

Siems is a master of scientific illustration (with a background in fashion design!) who clearly identifies and reveals the lives inside the creatures she brings to the page.

Check out the full post/review HERE.

Janet Halfmann's WHO IS SINGING is illustrated by Chrissy Chabot, and provides a sort of "first book of birding for the youngest observers. Halfmann limits her choices to some of the most familiar birds in the midwest (and much of the country), each of which still has large populations that can be found in urban, suburban, and rural locations. She also provides a winning pattern of question/response for page turns. The opening question includes a "readable" translation of familiar birdsong, followed by a page turn that depicts the bird interacting within typical habitat, including food/prey, diurnal/nocturnal setting, and some typical behavior. 

IF you missed it, check out the full review HERE.

Calkins Creek
Imprint of Boyds Mills & Kane 2021

When it comes to observing nature, meet Margaret Lowman in this remarkable picture book. I hope you'll join me in singing its praises and sharing it widely. THE LEAF DETECTIVE: How Margaret Lowman Uncovered Secrets in the Rainforest is written by Heather Lang and illustrated by Jana Christy. It's hard for me to imagine anyone who is not a fan of the rainforest, and anyone who doesn't have a strong impulse toward both curiosity and concern when that subject is mentioned.

 

Before the main text begins, a quotation by Margaret "Canopy Meg: Lowman is showcased on its own page:

"We are PART of our ecosystem, not outside it."

Trust me on this one, you should read (or even reread!) the full review and comments HERE.

So, this is a small selection to launch  NONFICTION NOVEMBER MONTH, (Sponsored in the UK), with a plan to share prior and new reviews most days ahead. The abundance of worthy offerings is somewhat mind boggling, but I hope you'll join me in exploring them all!