Published by Farrar, Straus, and Giroux

Summary:  The narrative begins long ago when nomads traveled through Europe and Asia, fighting wolves for their prey.  A girl meets a young wolf and they play together until the pup gets older.  This cycle is repeated throughout history, with the bond between child and pup growing, and the certainty that their friendship can’t last becoming less.  In the last iteration, the human group packs up and leaves the area, the boy calls to his wolf friend, “and Dog left the wolf pack to follow his boy away.”  The last spread shows a contemporary girl and puppy meeting for the first time.  Includes two pages of back matter giving additional information on how dogs became domesticated and a bibliography.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Dog lovers will be intrigued by the progression of domestication over thousands of years.  The illustrations seem simple with cartoon-inspired characters, but also include gorgeous backgrounds portraying the natural world.  The back matter adds to the research value and will make the book more interesting to older kids.

Cons:  The process of domestication is very simplified.

Published by Charlesbridge

Summary:  Zapped, wrapped, trapped, or poked: those are a few of the ways flies get eaten by other animals.  Each method is accompanied by a cartoon illustration along with a few sentences of text describing how the fly is trapped and consumed.  The last few pages give nutrition facts for flies, show their edible parts, and offer lists of books and websites, as well as a selected bibliography.  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  The emphasis on the gross-out factor, reinforced in the illustrations, will undoubtedly have readers flocking to this book like the proverbial flies to honey.

Cons:  If flies are such easy prey, why are there still so many of them around?

Published by Lee and Low Books

Summary:  The isolation of the islands that make up Hawai’i means that they are home to plant and animal species that exist nowhere else on Earth.  One of these is the Kamehameha butterfly, named for the king who united all of the islands.  In 2009, a group of fifth grade students led a successful campaign to make this butterfly the state insect, hoping to bring attention to the endangered butterfly.  Soon scientists from the state and the University of Hawai’i started working together to help save the Kamehameha.  Citizen scientists helped collect data and photos.  Since then, thousands of butterflies have been raised in captivity and released all around Hawai’i.  Includes an afterword with a map and many photos; an illustrator’s note; and a list of sources.  48 pages; grades 2-5.

Pros:  Another excellent nonfiction book by the Sibert Medal winning team of Susan Roth and Cindy Trumbore.  Kids will be inspired by the way elementary students made a real difference in helping with an environmental issue.  The collage illustrations enhance the text, which includes information on the formation of the Hawaiian islands, the butterfly’s life cycle, King Kamehameha, and how the scientists carried out their project.

Cons:  Even with the pronunciation guides, I struggle with how to say some of the Hawaiian words.

Published by Beach Lane Books

Summary:  Each page shows a large, colorful picture of a bird, a small picture of the bird using its beak, a sentence about how the bird uses its beak and a label identifying the bird.  Beaks are used for straining, tossing, crushing, and a host of other activities.  The final bird is a baby ruddy duckling who uses its beak, as do many birds, to break out of its egg.  Includes a two-page spread showing silhouettes of each bird relative to a human, where it lives in the world, and what its diet is; also a bibliography.  40 pages; ages 3-8.

Pros:  Over 20 birds are profiled, and the illustrations are striking.  Readers will be amazed at how many different uses there are for a beak.

Cons:  The information is pretty minimal; this is probably more of a read-aloud or a book to browse than something that will help much with research.