HIKING: Summer Time To Touch Grass

 

This book was released in 2019, just before the Covid lockdown, and it was certainly in the making for years before that. it was also a product of a time before the current "TOUCH GRASS" mantra arrived. THE HIKE, written and illustrated by Alison Farrell, is a testament to the staying power of a picture book at its best. 

CHRONICLE BOOKS, 2019

The target age for this charmer is preschool to kindergarten, and yet it speaks to me from the opening pages. The kid-friendly illustrations throughout invite any reader of any age to dive into the adventurous spirit of childhood and go along for the hike!  

The title page reveals the field guide notebook of one character, Wren, who leads the three sisters from their nature-setting home through a full day of exploration of the bounties and beauties of nature.

The main text is simple, using few but perfectly chosen words: 

"We are going on a hike."

On that same page, hand-lettered labels  reveal names of the sisters and their dog, multiple plants and critters shown in their natural setting, with the colors of nature rendered in simple media including choices that most kids would find in a large set of crayons. Page after page continues the labeling of flora and fauna, sample notes in Wren's field guide, the antics of Bean, and occasional speech bubbles as the girls interact. 

Their roaming consumes the entire day into dusk, but they eventually reach their destination, a mountain top at which each completes her mission. Their return toward a well-lit and welcoming home includes the overhead expanse of stars in labeled constellations. When that happy resolve concludes, Wren's sketchbook offers added spreads and valuable nature information, all presented in child-like speeches and lettering. The model it presents for launching a summer notebook/;sketchbook project for kids at home is both appealing and accessible. 

This is all valuable and appealing on its surface, but the seemingly simple story also resonates with each girl's individuality, with the purposeful and self-directed use of a summer day, with their mutual appreciation of each other and of nature. All of these elevate an apparently simplistic or even scientific choice of story to one that invites return over the days of summer and years of lives. 

To read a prior post featuring two picture books on the power of footloose nature fun, read HERE. 

I recently read two middle grade novels in which the worlds (one incorporating recognizable location names, the other with imagined names suggesting places we now know) are post-apocalyptic from both environmental and political destructions of the resources we too often take for granted. Both include scenes in which characters reflect back, with melancholy, to the people who came before, who failed to appreciate and protect what they had before it was too late. Both, I'll add, are able to offer hope and a suggestion of a better future in various ways, but neither imagines that the harm can be undone. If this sounds interesting to you or young readers you know, check out D-39, A ROBODOG'S JOURNEY by Irene Latham (a verse novel that reads compellingly) and The TEAR COLLECTOR by R. M Romero. My reviews on goodreads are linked to the titles.

WE CARRY THE SUN: Carry This Picture Book Home!

 

NORTON YOUNG READERS, 2025

Award-winning author Tae Keller's narrative talent is paired with luminous and thought-expanding illustrations by Rachel Wada in a gorgeous new picture book about... SOLAR POWER! Before assuming any preconceived opinions about current issues and attitudes regarding solar technology, read this, please. WE CARRY THE SUN is an examination of the all-important place of the sun in our human (and planetary) lives. Launched by intensely golden endpapers, the title page takes readers of any age back to those moments in which we view the sun's brilliance through tree tops. It entices us to stare but demands a raised hand to mitigate its intensity. The sun's incredible power to improve and enlighten our lives is captured in that image, while the title emphasizes the ironic reality that the power of the sun is both out of reach and immediately accessible. 

While this text describes advancing technology, it launches readers into the reality that the sun (which preceded even the formation of our planet) as essential to life. It became a concept in human lives only about six thousand years ago. The language in which this account unfolds  encourages readers to pair their lived experiences with those of the earliest humans just as they lift their faces to the radiant, warming sun. 

Within that same spread, questions arise. Could that natural warmth make its way into homes? Could the daily  and yearly arcs of the sun help predict lives through habits, temperatures, season, and migrations? Thousands of years of humanity's dependence on the sun for warmth and light quickly proceed to recent centuries in which fossil fuels provide some man-made benefits of the sun-- light and heat. Awareness of pollution is home/locale centered (soot and breathing issues), though some thinkers of that era realized that the wider community and planet could suffer as well. Even so, the central concern of the time was the possibility of running out of coal or oil. 

A series of less-that-famous thinkers have their pursuits described, from Augustin Mouchot's studies and experiments with heat traps for the sun and burning mirrors (used centuries earlier in China). A few decades later Charles Fritts explores those ideas further and finds ways to turn sun's light into electric current: the first solar panel! Then Bostonian engineer Aubrey Eneas moves to California for better access to sun and combines solar electric study with an ostrich farm!

Now you certainly must get the idea. Regardless of what you may have known about solar energy and technology, this exploration will take you to untraveled stories of those who contributed to technologies and innovation. Like Marie Telcos and Eleanor Raymond who together designed solar-efficient buildings. To israel where solar water heaters began with a black-painted outdoor tub to bathe a dirty child in warm water.

Even as the contributors continue their travels through time and the pages of this book, the illustrations incorporate lighting that mirrors the opening's glowing outline of the sun on a child's hand. The sun's light lifts, defines, and inspires humans.

As oil and other fossil fuels become more readily accessible (and profitable), the shift to sun as a resource is sidetracked, but not totally. A globe-spanning account of men and women see the need for clean, safe, efficient fuel. Their pursuits bring solar energy to tiny watches and computers and on into space travel, building design, and more. When voices of Earth-awareness advocates gain volume, ideas strengthen and extend to countries throughout the world.

The informative narrative is simple and direct, woven with lyrical phrasing and inspiring questions for readers, resolving as it began with the ultimate challenge: 

"What if we could do even more?"

The text and illustrations allow readers of all genders, ethnicities, locations, ages, and interests to find themselves within that challenge. The author note reveals that she began by wondering "who invented solar panels?". That led to this effectively broad account of various contributors to solar power discoveries and developments. Her note repeats a message I appreciated as subtly conveyed through the main text: every individual can contribute. It is essential that we do, and she provides simple ideas we can all do every day. That author note alone is worth reading aloud to kids and adults. A timeline of SUN power in human history takes two pages and back matter includes other resources for those who want to pursue more details. 

With that summary, it should be obvious that my praise for this nonfiction offering is at the highest level. Not only does the content provide accessible, exciting, and inspiring insights into what we too often dismiss or debate as as "solar power" alternatives. It uplifts our human curiosity and capacity to improve lives for our immediate needs and for future generations. A school-age child enjoying this book could well find toddler siblings sitting in rapt attention at their side, absorbing the illustrations as eagerly as we all look up at a sunny sky.

THE BLUE JAYS THAT GREW A FOREST

 Blue jays are hard to ignore, but who would want to do that? Some folks with feeders are slightly snobbish, even resentful about greedy squirrels, swarms of starlings, and loudly aggressive jays. I, for one, adore jays, whether on the feeders or JAY-ing away in the tree tops and nearby foliage. During my years working at bird rescue and rehabilitation, I came to know and love jays quite well. Their personalities vary, but they are consistently entertaining, comical, and enormously clever. That's why the title alone had my attention for this new picture book.

PEACHTREE, 2025

THE BLUE JAYS THAT GREW A FOREST is written by Lynn Street and illustrated by Anne Hunter. I included an extra large cover image for this post because, if the title hadn't hooked me, the cover certainly would have. Add oaks, acorns, and autumn to a pair of blue jays and I'm a goner. In addition, there are inviting endpapers with various small spot illustrations of trees, acorns and jays, on land and in the air. One more page turn reveals an opening map of the "before" scene, indicating an established old growth oak wood and a nearby mostly bare field. 

This delightfully thorough nonfiction picture book begins, as it should, with an oak tree. After all, giant oaks from little acorns grow. A full page spread of one massive tree allows little readers (and old ones, too!) to notice how jays and squirrels busily interact within the abundance this one tree offers. Along with acorns, they find shelter, nesting potential, insects and other food potentials, and a natural playground. 

Within just a few facing lines, the plant science is described: Oak seeds are acorns, which need water, sun soil and room to grow. Acorns, though, are too heavy to be whisked into new locations by the wind. Those that drop and remain below, as some are pictured doing, have less chance to become full grown oaks. The acorns require a full summer to ripen, but once they do, it's time to feast! Squirrels and jays eagerly crack and devour, until full. Then, with instinctive wisdom, they begin to store seeds for the long, cold winter ahead. Jays can tote up to five acorns at a time (revealed in simple, accurate text and with a fantastic double spread illustration.) The flights of jays back and forth from the woods to the field develop a fascinating and compelling rhythm and urgency. 

Jays, like squirrels, stow their acorns one at a time, choosing locations with some landmark or other as memory cues to make them easier to relocate and consume under winter snow cover. Meanwhile, the race is on to gather and store enough while other critters compete for the bounty: turkeys, chipmunks, mice, deer and more. The back-and-forth of many jays on similar missions allows readers to recognize the urgency, efficiency, and even danger of this pattern. 

With the next several page turns we see the success of this effort during winter, the sprouting oaks from those missed during winter searches, the spring nesting and feeding times when other foods are more suited for hatchlings, and then fall cycle returns. Try to imagine the many human generations that have passed since that enormous oak was planted by some distant-in-time jay. And then imagine the years and generations of jays that will take part in planting a new oak wood just across the river, transforming a bare field into an entirely new ecosystem. As the concluding text says 

"The jays and oaks.

The oaks and jays.

Thrive.

Together."

Back matter includes five spreads of further informative facts, as well as acknowledgements, a glossary, and  resources. This is a colorful, clear account of a widely observable pattern that is often overlooked. It will entertain and enlighten, perhaps even winning more fans for those streamlined squawkers. It invites readers of any age to pay more attention to the fine feathered fiends who share our environments and, in fact, create them!

A PLACE FOR RAIN: Such a FUN Way to Take Action

 If you live where the recent spring rains turned gardens and farm fields into soggy swamps, you might also recall that last summer was a scorching drought. Much of the drippy midwest has been warned of likely droughts again in coming months.  The irony of those extremes, the damage of feast or famine in precipitation, provide reliable topics for casual conversations. This has been true in the past and is becoming a pattern across wider regions and with more dire consequences expected. Ask a farmer. 

NORTON KIDS PRESS, 2024

A PLACE FOR RAIN is written by  Michelle Schaub and illustrated by Blanca Gómez. I read about and reserved this delightful picture book while a downpour racketed outside my windows. The many good words I'd read about it also nudged me to take a closer look. 

I'm happy to say I was not disappointed!

The essential story is one of environmental stewardship, as achieved by young kids with some adult guidance and support. It could serve as a how-to book for anyone with the intent to make a personal contribution to improving imbalances and producing a better personal space and communities in need of balance with nature. Or, it's just a truly fun read with an underlying insight. 

In the first few pages we meet a diverse group of kids in their rainy-day school environment. The rhythmic and cleverly rhymed text can read as if describing a single day event, but easily suggests that this is a multi-stepped project taking days to accomplish, one that will serve the environment for years to come.

A raincoated, booted woman with a wheelbarrow enters in images, serving the project throughout, but without a single ext mention. That allows the busy, cartoonish kiddos to take center stage in this problem-solving process. 

And what is the issue? Well, early pages focus on an onomatopoetic engagement with rain, in the moment, unthreatening. Then a few spreads reveal that when rain becomes a downpour, it creates gushing, rushing, sogging flows that flush various detritus from roofs, gutters, asphalt, and more, flooding that debris into our waterways. That raincoat-clad adult and a couple of kids raise and answer this central question: 

"Can we lessen that mess?  Yes!"

Using available space and materials, they roll a barrel under a downspout, note the overflow when full, create a winding, shallow trough to channel that flow to a catchment area. That collection site is planted with water- and drought- tolerant native plants to absorb water and sludge. The bonus benefit of a colorful perennial garden that serves as insect and bird habitat is delightfully portrayed. This diversion from urban sewers and waterways that feed into lakes, rivers and oceans is unmistakable.

Illustrations are vibrant and vital, with  nearly geometric shapes and  soft-edged style that suggest universality among the diversity. The text is a terrific mentor pattern for those attempting to write in rhyme. That's not because it follows the usually mandatory strictness of meter and rhyme scheme. Instead, a rollicking but regular rhythm develops throughout, with lines that celebrate internal rhyme (see that masterful line above), interjections, sudden stops, and perfected pacing to enhance page turns. Granted, this would not be a challenging approach to mmimc, but it does confirm that those who choose to step aside from strict rules need to be VERY sure they can do it well. Schaub does exactly that!

I expected back matter, but there is none. As i considered the target age and intentions of the text, the thoroughness of embedded construction instruction, I could see why backmatter was not necessary. In fact, on the page that shows preparing the collection basin readers find a helpful chart explaining how to easily determine how well your chosen area drains and how to calculate an effective depth. Very clever, indeed!

I hope that many schools, families, day care centers, libraries, and others will find and share this entertaining and inspiring picture book.The language invites repeated readings, and the suggested project can be scaled;ed up or down to allow possible success for any readers. The more who take part, the greater the benefit to Earth, Water, and all of us. 

WHEN BEAVERS FLEW... (You read that right!)

RANDOM HOUSE STUDIO, 2024

The lively title of this new picture book provides a first taste of its effective approach to sharing a highly successful environmental rescue operation. WHEN BEAVERS FLEW: An incredible True Story of Rescue and Relocation is written by Kristen Tracy and illustrated by Luisa Uribe. As the author note in back indicates, this was a project ahead of its time "to use coexistence techniques to peacefully solve problems". This was referencing directly the mixed blessing of beaver presence, but can and should be carried through to most conflicts we have with nature and humans.

What are those mixed effects of beaver habitation? On the plus side, beavers reshape the environmental design of their habitat: expanding wetlands, gnawing down trees, inviting a vast array of other wildlife to the area's offerings, turning rivers and creeks into ponds and lakes. 

On the negative side, see all of the above. 

When McCall, Idaho, began to grow from a rustic, lightly populated area, the increasing beaver population was seen as detrimental- an intrusion on buildable land, destruction of newly planted greenery and trees, and concern about rapidly multiplying beaver populations. This is as much an account of Fish and Game Warden Elmo Heter as it is a recognition that  the PRO side of beavers' engagements with nature can be managed successfully.

He realized that an excess of beavers would inevitably lead to a call to trap and kill them. His clever conception was to remove most of the beavers to an area in which they would benefit the environment, thrive in population, and allow local development with a manageable number of beavers to enhance that region naturally. His science and environmental background suggested non-invasive transport approaches (including pack mules!). The intended region for relocation was seriously inaccessible. Thinking "out of the box", he paired random information about excess parachutes available cheaply after the end of the war with brainstorming about ways to safely launch and land beavers into this wild paradise. 

STEM and science processes take center stage as the minimal text and easily understood illustrations reveal multiple examples of the many "NO"s that preceded eventual success. (No beavers were harmed in the process.) Finally, enough variables and test runs and resulting escapes to freedom were considered before a single beaver, nicknamed GERONIMO, was flown, dropped, landed, and successfully "sprung". Repeated tests encouraged a full program.

The various field science elements that went into making this such a success are briefly but clearly mentioned- weighing, aging, pairing, and identifying drop areas all led to the wide population of beavers that now inhabit an extremely isolated conservation area. Their protection (and survival) are well-documented, shared now after years in which this project and its originator were generally untold.  Geronimo and seventy-five fellow furry explorers transformed large swaths of what is now the largest protected roadless forest in continental United States. That's success on any scale.

Forgive me for including so much detail, but each element in this project was fascinating and begged to be shared. Elmo's efforts and success call for celebration through text that invites page turns, surprised and a very satisfying ending. The illustrator is from Bogota, Columbia and a back note explains the intricate indigenous stones wall art tucked behind a pack mule on one spread. Throughout, the territory is depicted with a blend of welcome and grittiness, with the actors (human and otherwise) offering appeal and admiration. Resources are included in the back matter, and  School Library Journal gave it a starred review. I hope you will, too!

FIRE FLIGHT: A WILDLIFE ESCAPE

CAPSTONE EDITIONS, 2024

 What an astonishing true account this is! Inspired by the actual experience of a forest-fire-fighting helicopter pilot in 2020, it feels both eerily authentic and remarkably mystical. FIRE FLIGHT: A WILDLIFE ESCAPE is written by Cedar Pruitt and illustrated by Chiara Fedde. About a month into the raging California Creek Fire, one small, desperate owl flew into the open door of a water-dropping helicopter, seeking escape from the inferno below. 

The illustrations and minimalist, lyrical text brush the edges of emotions of the startled pilot and of the owl. No dramatic assignments of panic or relief are assigned. Rather the simple tale and realistic illustrations convey the intensely dramatic scenes and relationship as they flew together for the duration of several water scoops and drops. Eventually, with no more fanfare than that of its arrival, the owl exited the chopper to make its way through what remained of its habitat.

An author note at the back anchors this breathtaking story in the dates and events of the fires, the owl-arrival-and departure, and the eventual taming of a historic and destructive forest fire. Without belaboring the point, both some brief early text and a short back-matter list reference the  related concern of climate change and drought to such sustained and damaging fires. The ideas provided are very age appropriate and encourage readers to see their everyday choices as affecting a larger environment.

 

BRAVE BABY HUMMINGBIRD: What a Wonder!

 Anyone who reads my posts will know that I am an unabashed bird lover. Any book that involves birds, especially books that reveal deep understanding of actual species and their traits,  has my attention immediately. If the subject happens to be birds that I've personally experienced,  the book has an enormous head start to my heart. This next picture book scores on every point and doesn't disappoint. 

A Paula Wiseman Book, 2024
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

BRAVE BABY HUMMINGBIRD is written by superb nonfiction author Sy Montgomery, and illustrated by Tiffany Bozic. Each of these creators is a nature-specialist in their own right, but together  their work transports readers into the actual world of two actual baby hummingbirds. It is rare for even one hummingbird (of any age) to survive the conditions or events that might deposit them into untrained hands, but these two landed with a knowledgeable naturalist who knows how to ask the right questions. 

(As a former licensed wildlife rescuer, I was concerned that the story told might encourage readers to attempt to raise or rehabilitate wild birds themselves, but Montgomery's author note and back matter makes clear the importance of caring for wildlife properly. "The voice", who represents the human giving care to the orphaned hummingbird pair, mentions having ten years of training to know when, how, and why to prepare the hummers for the real world. 

Montgomery offers many ways in which people can help on their own while still providing these critters with the skilled and trained support they require.)

I'm not usually a fan of assuming a first-person voice to convey realistic information from an animal subject, but this is an example of doing it well. More than well. There is very little attempt to suggest emotions and motivations, other than the realistic hunger and fear experienced when the parent hummer does not return to the nest. Otherwise, the narrative reveals observations, reactions, impulses, and actions that carry readers through the first full year of life for two hummers hatched in a nutshell sized nest, born the size of a bumblebee. Everything described reveals Montgomery's research into the process of raising and releasing baby birds, particularly hummingbirds, while celebrating their uniquely small size and remarkable flight patterns. 

The illustrations are both accurately detailed and inspiringly artistic, elevating an already jaw-dropping species to near-magical. Each visual element adds to the information base readers gain in exploring this lovely and lively book. 

As a side note, this is another of those picture books that will hook adults. I suspect that Montgomery may have read a memoir/informational book about humming birds that I often recommend. Anyone who is intrigued with hummers should seek it out: 

FASTEST THINGS ON WINGS: RESCUING HUMMINGBIRDS IN HOLLYWOOD, by Terry Masear, Harper Collins, 2016.

ARMANDO'S ISLAND: Interview With Author Marsha Diane Arnold

CREATIVE EDITIONS, 2023

HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY to a new and important picture book, ARMANDO'S ISLAND, and to its creators, Marsha Diane Arnold and illustrator, Anne Yvonne Gilbert. 

Marsha Diane Arnold

 It has been my pleasure and an honor to review this impressive new offering (HERE) and several other previous titles by Arnold, HERE and HERE. She has kindly agreed to discuss some of my questions and I'm delighted to share that conversation with readers today, on LAUNCH DAY for ARMANDO's ISLAND.

SB: Thanks for taking time to respond to my questions, Marsha. ARMANDO’S ISLAND is such a lovely, lush, and important new picture book that I’m imagining you are quite busy celebrating its release today. I'll get right into it so you can go back to cake and tropical treats!.

Which came first for you in this writing- the topic of the rainforest, the character Armando, or something else? Readers love hearing the story behind a story.

 

MDA:  

First, I should explain that I wrote this story over twenty years ago. I don’t have a lot of my early notes. I’ve always loved nature and wildlife. I feel most at home in nature, surrounded by wildlife. I’ve been involved for decades with organizations that work to preserve nature and our precious wildlife. For me to write a story, a fable really, about the destruction of the rainforest, was not a big leap. To answer your question, I started with the rainforest and its wildlife

SB:  From that response, I wonder if you could share more about your research process and decisions in terms of writing fiction or nonfiction, writing realistic contemporary or taking a slightly fantastical/magical approach? How did you “land” on the storytelling approach here?

 

MDA:

I’m a storyteller at heart. I enjoy writing fiction stories and I often use anthropomorphic animals.  I feel young children naturally relate to stories and talking animals. In my Lights Out, also from Creative Company, I wanted to write about how light pollution affects animals, but I didn’t want to do it with non-fiction. I chose to write the tale of a group of animals, searching together for Darkness, trying to escape the constant light that surrounded them. So too I decided to write a fable-like story of the rainforest and its destruction. 

 

My memory is that I wrote this story fairly quickly and didn’t research extensively. I already knew what was happening in the rainforest. I already knew a bit about the wildlife that lived in the rainforest. I needed a setting and I did think about other places, like Indonesia, but the wildlife of the Amazon rainforest called to me. 

 

But your questions caused me to think again. I have almost no notes on my computer, but I wrote the story over two decades ago. I searched my file cabinet and lo and behold! There, in a drawer rarely opened, was a long forgotten file entitled Armando’s Island. In it I found a 1993 note from the World Wildlife fund about tropical rain forests! I found a brochure from the Rainforest Alliance, information from Amazon Watch, and notes I’d taken from other books about the rainforest. I was probably collecting information for years before I sat down to write. This often happens with me. An idea tumbles in my head for months or years, I collect information as I come across it, and finally sit down to write the story.

 

SB: An aside... I recently moved and downsized many things, but transported some of my own writing files (hard copies), even ones I hadn't opened for years. Your response encourages me to think that I might one day be glad i did. Thank you.

 Back to the subject at hand...

Do you dream of the rainforest, of visiting it, of returning to it? Do other habitats and global destinations call to you?

MDA: 

My husband and I had a tiny casita in Costa Rica for a time. It was near the forest. Toucans, peccaries, and monkeys surrounded us. To me, that was heaven. And yes, I’d love to visit more rainforests around the world. The setting of my first book, Heart of a Tiger, was India, yet I’ve never visited. Besides the Amazon, I’ve longed to visit India and see a tiger in the wild.

 

SB: My review mentioned the challenges felt by individual protectors standing strong against more wealthy and powerful forces. Would you share your thoughts about that, and about how young readers might retain their purpose and determination when feeling very small or helpless?

 

MDA: I think we all feel small and helpless against the forces of destruction. My May 2023 book One Small Thing had this exact theme. It’s a “cozy” book, even though Raccoon loses his home to a lightning strike in it. The other animals don’t know how to help, until they each realize that they don’t have to do something big.  Just one small thing will benefit. All those small things together can make a big difference. Each of us can do “one small thing” to help the rainforest, whether it’s eating local beef and fruits or avoiding products with palm oil. Perhaps, most importantly, we can start by learning about the rainforests and their wildlife. When we learn about them, we will care. Only when we care, will we have the will to do something.

 

I’m currently working on an Activity Guide for Armando’s Island. That will be one way to learn about the rainforest and how to protect it. I hoped to have the guide on my website by launch day, but it is likely to be available be early September as schools resume.

 

SB: Is there something else about this book that you’d like readers to know?

 

MDA: 

The illustrations are magnificent. As my grandson says, “They’re so detailed.” Anne Yvonne Gilbert is a world-renowned illustrator and I am humbled to have had her do the illustrations for Armando’s Island. If you, like me, can’t fly off to a rainforest right now, just open Armando’s Island and sit for awhile with the beautiful wildlife Anne Yvonne has painted.

 

SB: I can't wait to do that very thing. (I reviewed a file of the book.) My preordered copy should arrive today!

I have no doubt that you are busy celebrating the release of this wonderful new book, but you are also likely to be involved in writing/planning for new works and upcoming releases. Are you able to share any news or hint at some sprouts?

 

MDA: The truth is that I’ve had two books come out this year and with all the PR for those, plus the manuscript consultations I do for other writers, I’ve had little time to work on my own projects. However, I did sell a manuscript in January that I am very excited about. It hasn’t been announced, so sadly, I can’t share about it quite yet. It is non-fiction, most unusual for me, but it’s not about a person or an animal. Wait until you see! Look for it in spring 2025! 

 

I do have several stories I am eager to begin work on or finish up. A couple of those are about animals. Probably not a surprise.

 

Thank you so much, Sandy, for your interest in my work and the rainforest!

 

SB: Diane, I am so grateful for having this opportunity to share the book and your responses with readers here. Thank you again for sharing your time and thoughts. Congratulations on the importance and success of this latest release, and the upcoming new title-- I'm so excited to learn more!

Readers, you can read my recent review HERE, and praise from others HERE, and HERE.

 

Marsha Diane Arnold

Website: www.marshadianearnold.com

Social media access:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarshaDArnold/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarshaDianeArnoldAuthor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marshadianearnoldauthor/

 

 

 

 

 

ARMANDO'S ISLAND: Trust Your Values

 

CREATIVE EDITIONS, 2023

Author Marsha Diane Arnold has produced another sure-to-be-classic picture book, ARMANDO'S ISLAND,  whose narrative and illustrations will entrance readers of any age. The cover itself is an invitation to immerse ourselves in the incomparable home of flora, fauna, and a young character who is wise beyond his years.

Readers first meet Armando as he breaks the fourth wall by aiming his gaze at YOU, the reader, who has found him in his home. Arnold's direct yet lyrical text incorporates accurate rainforest terms and descriptions, nestled within a heart-tugging fictional tale about the power of purpose in Armando's life. By connecting so strongly with readers through text and images, they, too, will experience that purpose. Rich with sensory detail, even though written as a third person narrative, the unfolding text channels Armando's daily life so intimately that it opens readers to sensing "the leaves crunching beneath him", "mud squishing between toes", and the intimate connection he feels to this leafy refuge.

From the pre-narrative note about Armando's responsibility for a specific small tract within the rainforest, to the title page art which gently frames his home in a heart-shaped form, the mood is set to fall in love with the rainforest and root for everything Armando loves. Even before the main text begins.

Within the first few page turns we note that Armando has grown from a boy to a young man who treasures those early years of his life and the ways in which the rainforest continues to offer him peace and security. He (through the high-stakes text) perceives whirring chainsaws, rumbling trucks, flames, and other ominous signs closing in from all directions. This raises the stakes for him and for readers. Within single lines of text, various creatures "no longer..." (text describes typical behaviors), providing information about rainforest inhabitants while sustaining emotional investment and growing concern for their welfare.

In a classic "storymagician" approach, three sets of "others" make their ways to Armando to offer every conceivable option in exchange for his increasingly isolated "island" of rainforest. In each case Armando considers, respectfully, but declines. In each case, surrounding parcels that are lost to development lead creatures from those areas to take refuge within Armando's territory. The conclusion does not surprise, in terms of Armando's choices or the resulting effect on the wildlife. Instead it affirms and reassures readers. If anything manages to suspend belief it is that his rights and wishes prevailed, since that is so seldom the case when money and power are involved. This, though, merits our trust and confidence, since a single read-through will leave us with shock and chagrin that ANYONE would destroy such a treasure. I can't imagine anyone reading this book only once. EVERYONE must move through cynicism to believe, and HOPE, as Armando does, that the siren song of rainforest awareness might one day reawaken in those who have lost sight of what has real value. 

Back matter provides brief paragraphs about some of the animals whose presence and behaviors appear within the narrative. 

I can't resist spending some moments on the incredibly skilled and beguiling illustrations of Anne Yvonne Gilbert.  The intricate details, layered lives, emotional energy, and delightful demeanors that weave themselves into each scene invite readers to experience indirectly as many elements of a rainforest habitat as those who live within it. Any single spread could be displayed as a work  of art, yet the shifting perspectives, maturing Armando, distressed and desperate animals, and determined intruders contribute immensely to the page-turning power of this story. Although I often insist on not having favorites among many decades of picture book loves, I will always include Lynne Cherry's THE GREAT KAPOK TREE: A Tale of the Rainforest among my "Best of ALL Time" listings. (Clarion Books, 2000). If you haven't read it, please do, and consider "voicing" the animals who speak in the boy's dream in ways that mirror their natural sounds. Feel the urgency of those desperate KAPOK TREE residents as they beg for protection of their singular, remarkable home. It, too, is a sort of island of survival within a rainforest. 

ARMANDO'S ISLAND stands strong and proud in the long wake of this classic picture book. It offers just as much allure and emotional depth while informing and inviting participation by the reader in important decisions about the preservation of the rainforest. In this case, the animals speak only through their compelling expressions and natural impulse to seek survival within a shrinking habitat. Armando is wide awake to the reality of what is being offered to him and what the consequences of his choices would mean. This new offering, like Cherry's more fanciful account, is informational fiction at its best.

Aramano's Island is available for preorder HERE.  I am grateful to Marsha Diane Arnold for agreeing to respond to several questions and will share our conversation in a future post on August 8, the release date. I hope you'll check in to see what she has to say about writing this remarkable text. 

WATER: How We Can Protect Our Freshwater

 

Candlewick Books. 2023

Some very impressive new nonfiction picture books have captured my attention in recent weeks and will be featured in this coming posts. The first, perhaps because it occurred to me that without freshwater in the lives of Earthlings like us are, nothing else would matter, is WATER: How We Can Protect Our Freshwater is written by Catherine Barr and illustrated by Christine Engel. 

With direct but accurate and easy to understand text, the amazing importance of WATER on Earth is explained with kid-friendly language, lively and globally informative illustrations, and occasional and unintyrusive image labels. Also valuable are small inserts in which "FACE THE FACTS" sidebars effectively extend and enhance the main narrative with brief bullseye facts related to that page.

The distinction between "BLUE WATER" and "GREEN WATER" was particularly significant, indicating that the first term refers to water that is essential for human survival on the surface of our planet. GREEN WATER refers to water captured within the layers of the earth that is equally essential to the survival of plants, from the tiniest of fern or foliage to the mightiest of sequoias. These two kinds of freshwater survival water sources are not the most common water on our planet. Salt water is. But even such simple statements become awe-inspiring as this vibrant and very human story reveals how magically/scientifically wondrous freshwater is. We also encounter examples of ways it is polluted, wasted, controlled, and harming people (and every other living thing) by carelessness, bad habits, and even intentional efforts in order to obtain power, money, and more.

The credentials of the author are well-established and there are many action-ideas incorporated within some spreads, especially in the final double spread. A sense of helplessness is paralyzing, but this presentation is an empowering effort and might well "launch" many young activists. This decade, the 2020s, is designated the "WATER ACTION DECADE". That means getting your hands on this important book and sharing it widely is an important first step in making smart actions part of our daily lives.

MAKING MORE- How Life Begins: A Masterpiece from Katherine Roy

In case you haven't noticed, I read MANY picture books across many styles, topics, intended audiences, and formats. Here's is one that took me by surprise with its scope, beauty, and content, a triumph of story, images, and language. 

Norton Young Readers, 2023

MAKING MORE: How Life Begins is entirely the creation of Katherine Roy. and it's all about creation. As the tag line on her website states, and perfectly describes the unforgettable books Roy has created to date:

Creating beautiful, science-based books that tell the story of the natural world.

I've read and thoroughly enjoyed her prior titles. (Click her name above to see them featured on her website.) In the case of this latest release, Roy has taken on a topic immensely broader than her prior titles, as expansive and comprehensive as those other very special titles were: stars, Mars, sharks, elephants, and ocean depths.

In this case, She addresses the ways in which life reproduces itself. That, in fact, has always been the definition of life:  from microscopic plants and creature to ourselves. An essential element in any definition of life is its capacity to reproduce themselves.

The visual narrative that ties these portrayals together involves an obviously pregnant woman, an apparently male partner, a young boy, and their dog. The opening spread states her case clearly with a familiar robin on center-right stage, bill grasping grass tufts to prepare a nest. Directly from that page is more memorable and important text, which I'll refer to again as I conclude. 

"Everywhere, all around you, life is making more. Mammals and insects. Trees and flowers.Fish and frogs. Like food and water, like oxygen and sunlight, reproduction is essential for our Earth."

The page turn extends this universal truth about the most frequently observed reproduction pattern:

"Meet, merge, and create something NEW."

The family explores and observes within a wild habitat that appears to be temperate northern hemisphere but with truths that apply across the globe.

After that gloriously powerful launch, Roy moves to more  detailed text and images that  address genes, DNA, cells, gametes and scientific side notes and images with accurate labels to help  make sense of the more complex expository text. Even so, the natural scenes on facing pages invite even the youngest to pay rapt attention to a reading, even if the content is more environmentally advanced that they are ready to fully absorb. Even someone (like me), someone who has seen such creatures and settings in real life and in a variety of images, can  find curiosity rising and questions propelling us onward.

Roy demonstrates mastery of  scope, too, not just related to species variations. This content explores the HOW, but not limited to mechanics at the observable or cellular level, ways the merging is supported by sound, sight, and other signals to connect the matching living things in the area. it also notes ways in which chance plays an incredible role, including external fertilization and internal mating. Exceptional cases are also addressed, like bees and other insects pollinating plants, though some plants like ferns reproduce without requiring others of their own kind or pollination to generating MORE life.

Roy's illustrations are a masterful mix of being beautifully expressive and accurately drawn, labeled, and painted with color and other details that make this a picture book that might well supplement understanding among advanced science studies. Even the topic of crossing between/among species of many living things plays a role in the important truth that CHANGE is another essential aspect of Earth's survival. The concluding art spread opens into a double-wide gatefold of celebration of new life, one that carries that visual narrative of the single family into a social event representing a wider community. Readers could spend long minutes savoring and investigating. 

Back matter is an effective resource for parent/teacher/librarian readers and also for young readers who have reached a developmental stage of readiness for study and discussion of the details of this subject matter. The KEY TERMS glossary is thorough and helpful, with species listed in the order in which they appear, using common names and scientific ones. I especially appreciate this approach  (as opposed to noting those  in smaller font on each page as they occur) because the technically-detailed pages are able to remain the focus of the book. A "backyard" note indicates that Roy chose to identify and investigate living things in her own proximity. She issues a direct invitation to explore near home with suggestions to readers of places they might be on any given day in their own lives, and things to look for. A full page of small-font text describes/explains very effectively what is happening at a cellular level during MEIOSIS, with easy to follow (and notated) illustrations of each step in the process. Don't miss the author note that follows all this. it is like having Roy as as guest in your home/mind!

Even if scientific and other nonfiction topics are not your favorite types of picture books (which is hard to imagine, but can be true!) please take a close look at this one. Once you do, I'm guessing you will track down all the other picture books by this impressive creator/scientist.  I'm for one, mama eager to see MORE picture books emerging from her talent and knowledge.

As mentioned in opening lines above, I want to return that opening text in the book, these words:

"Everywhere, all around you, life is making more. Mammals and insects. Trees and flowers.Fish and frogs. Like food and water, like oxygen and sunlight, reproduction is essential for our Earth."

My eagerness for you (any and all of you reading this) to find, read, and consider the value of this book is based on its own merits. Beyond that, I am actively urging you to learn about it and talk about it. This hinges on the current political movement (by a a loud and powerful, but small contingent of activists) to remove many books from public access. This could become a prime candidate for such censorship. There is nothing graphic or shocking in this offering, but the very topic seems to be beyond rigid and arbitrary "standards", offending efforts to deny science and information to those outside their personal purview. If you check this out and believe it belongs in schools and libraries and homes, please speak up-- among your friends, to your librarians, and in public settings. Thank you.

More Terrific CYBILS AWARDS Nominees: Focus On Nature!

Neal Porter Books
Imprint of Holiday House, 2022

I'll admit to jumping the "ready for spring" gun here, but A SEED GROWS hits exactly the right note for me, even while looking out the window at residues of snow on the ground. Written and illustrated by the very talented Antoinette Portis, this is certain to become a classic among picture book collections regarding seeds/plants, at home and in classrooms. Remember, too, that this is a perfect time to plant some seeds in a sunny window and plan on how and where they may eventually make their way outdoors with a head start on other plants and seeds!

Here's what I had to say about it on Goodreads:

"This is a delightful, colorful approach to the basic information about how seeds grow and develop. it is also lyrical and invites audiences to participate and retell the essential information as well as providing appealing passages and lines. 

An asset for direct instruction and also mentor writing for young learners and appealing to any age."

Beaming Books, 2022

Next is a timely title as we hear heartbreaking news of destructive floods and extreme weather in various parts of this country and around the world. THE TREE OF HOPE: The Banyan Tree that Inspired a Community to Stand Tall is written by Anna Orenstein-Cordona and illustrated by Juan Manuel Moreno. This nonfiction account of an ancient banyan  tree on the island of Puerto Rico is based on documented events involving a specific tree and the community who love it. 

The author only provides a slight nod to personification by using the pronouns"he/him/his" in some language referencing this tree. After growing on a public slope for more than one hundred years, the worst hurricane in the island's history, Maria, nearly resulted in its destruction. The decisions and perseverance of community actions that saved it is impressive in its own right, but also provides an analogy for the countless ways in which every aspect of island lives and communities and infrastructure have continued to be rebuilt. Resilience at its best.

This is a gorgeous and uplifting story, specific to an actual, particular tree and community, but also revealing a general approach to nature and the value of preserving and protecting our environment.

Candlewick, 2022

My final featured title in this post is THE POEM FOREST: Poet W. S. Merwin and the Palm Tree Forest He Grew from Scratch, written by Carrie Fountain and illustrated by Chris Turnham. This is a revelation and celebration of a former poet laureate whose respect for nature and humanity resulted in the largest and most diverse palm forest anywhere, and then gave the entire project away for permanent conservancy.

This was a pleasure to read on so many levels. I repeated reading it several times and shared it with others. Merwin is an undeniably gifted poet with adult credentials in that field that are undebatable. Yet I'd dare to suggest that what he accomplished in this decades-long project aimed at the reclamation/restoration/conservation of lands and plant species (especially endangered varieties of palms) is an accomplishment beyond measure. 

The author managed to write prose text with lyrical elements. The comparison of wild spaces being "straightened" out of existence, or damaged into wastelands, makes a potent impact and is figurative language that will resonate with young readers, especially those whose view of the world is a wiggly, winding one.

That's it for this post, but I leave you with some superb choices to explore and, I hope, a persistent itch to make something grow green!

A PEEK AT BEAKS: Remarkable Birds!

 I am a pushover for birds of any kind, and I treasure the years in which I was able to care for injured or abandoned birds as a licensed rehabilitator. I've always found them to be some of the most elegant, beautiful, and remarkable creatures on earth, which is saying a lot. Holding various birds in my own hands made me intimately aware of the facility and genius of their body designs and functions. Especially beaks. 

When a bobble-headed, featherless, newly-hatched bird arrives needing help to survive, the wrong care or feeding could end their lives, and yet they have very few identifiable attributes that will soon become visible. Those instinctively gaping beaks, their colorful open maws, and even their distinctive calls for food in those first hours and days provided critical information about what and how to feed them. So I'll add to this text that beak traits are also tools for survival in those earliest days.

Species identifiable traits will develop, as birds do, in a blink of time: growing feathers, becoming able to feed themselves, and (again instinctively) using those beaks in ways they were designed (by each species' adaptations) to do. 

MIllbrook Press, 2021

A PEEK AT BEAKS: Tools Birds Use, written by Sara Levine and illustrated by Kate Slater, is a colorful, delightful, curiosity-compelled picture book that will be loved by kids of many ages and by the adults who share them. Both creators appear to have a similar fascination with birds to my own. That's important, because the accuracy in the science (biology, anatomy, environment, etc.) for each bird in each category resonates with accuracy and informative content, but the tone of language and images make those examples feel as appealing as they are intriguing. 

Two elements of this book especially struck me as super-smart: 

The title page launches readers with precise illustrations of the tools that will be described and compared to birds throughout the book. It's a helpful approach, since many young readers may not be familiar with each of these common tools.

One page turn from that title page asks a very important question: "Have you ever imagined you were a bird?" It is beyond my brain to picture a single child (who has ever seen a bird) who would not have imagined themselves within that identity at some point or another. The pattern that then follows provides the premise (that bird beaks serve as useful tools that help birds survive and thrive), framing a silhouette of a bird seemingly using a version of the "tool" being compared.

Each comparison describes a single featured example, plus several more as "supporting cast" in secondary appearances within the illustrations. The closing has a fun participatory prompt. Brief backmatter offers a simple example/explanation about adaptive evolution and shifts over time among various bird species and the ways their "tools" have changed to suit their habitats.The further reading list is welcome and helpful, too, especially for those whose imaginations switch into overdrive!

This is a sure winner for families, classrooms, science study, and mentor text in compare/contrast science reporting. For anyone seeking more suggested titles, just type "birds" into the search box in that menu to the right >>>> and find many other picture books on this topic across all ages. Don't say I didn't warn you that I am a pushover for BIRDS!

Did You Know? AMAZON RIVER is AMAZING!

 When I say AMAZON RIVER, what do you think?

Flesh-eating piranhas?  But did you know about the vegetarian piranhas that eat underwater fruit and then deposit seeds many miles upstream and downstream in their poop?

Brazilian rainforests?  Largest river?  But did you know that includes mountain sources and sprawling tributaries crossing seven countries and thousands of miles of river basin/ 

And did you know? The actual AMAZON RIVER is only the surface layer for a three river system: a moist overhead aerial current, the flowing surface waters, and an underground river, miles beneath that surface, only discovered a few years ago? 

Let's be honest. Other than those who live in, study, or frequently visit the vast realm of the AMAZON RIVER, few would know these details, or most of the others that are throughly researched and thoughtfully selected for inclusion in this visual and well-written picture book journey of fantastic features and facts. The Amazon River truly is a natural wonder of our world.

Flying Eye Books, 2021

AMAZON RIVER is written by Sangma Francis and illustrated with Romolo D'Hipolito. This is a recent addition to an expanding catalog of nonfiction picture book titles from a publisher on a mission to combine powerful illustrations and perspectives that entice and engage readers with places in the world known to most of us only superficially. They specialize in capturing the talent and insights of international authors and artists to present a universally appealing view.

The sweep and allure of the contents of this book are undeniable, with brilliance in colors, points of view, revelatory information, and stylistic portrayal that are both realistic and inspiring. With a brief introduction from the author and a table of contents organized into four categories, a massive topic becomes manageable and intriguing. Each nods to subtopics that could (and do) fill other extensive books, yet highlights both discreet details and sweeping relationships, adding to the impact for readers of any age. 

Each section encompasses very brief chapters, often only a double-page spread, but dense with images and accessible content.  From SOURCE to SEA focuses on the physical science of the river at various stages, especially water-facts involving a water/land mass nearly the size of continental United States. WILDLIFE on the RIVERBANK, the next section, explores extraordinary wildlife (plant and animal) that make the air, land, and riverscapes of this basin their home. The next section is PEOPLE of the RAINFOREST, revealing a limited but important view of facts about the indigenous people who developed within and lived interdependent with the fantastic and diverse biomes throughout this complex habitat. And finally, LIFE ON THE RIVER is a section filled with examples of various ways that human societies, economies, and cultures interact with, depend on, exploit, and attempt to protect the Amazon River, in eras [ast and in the modern world.

I admire the design and production of this oversized and inviting book that competes successfully with video alternatives. Sure, watching clips would be a lovely extension of this book, but the slightly retro yet modern style and surprising information encourage individual or shared examination of each spread, while sparking curiosity to learn even more. The sturdy binding and paper stock will hold up well over the many rereads it deserves during a long shelf life in classrooms and libraries. This is another wonderful example of a picture book that might dwell in a reference collection, but is also beautifully suited for use in science, social studies, geography, and general nonfiction lessons, discussions, and classrooms. I suggest that you give it a try and then ask someone else about the AMAZON RIVER. It gives you a wonderful excuse to share some of these surprising and exciting details and recommend an exciting nonfiction book as well. 

Why not start with that question... Did you know...?