Published by Chronicle Books

Summary:  Why is a nest noisy?  Because of the life being nurtured inside of it.  Nests are made of an almost infinite range of materials, from millions of interlocking army ants to the hardened saliva of a swiftlet (whose nest is used to make birds’ nest soup).  And nests aren’t just for birds.  Alligators, platypuses, orangutans, and others make nests, too.  Each two page spread has a statement about what a nest is (“A nest is neighborly”, “A nest is hidden”, etc.), followed by a paragraph or two explaining this statement, all gorgeously illustrated with exquisitely detailed watercolors.  The front endpapers show all the nests described in the book, and the back ones display all the animals that inhabit them.  Ages 5-10

Pros:  This award-winning team has produced beautiful nonfiction books about eggs, seeds, butterflies, and rocks.  The writing and illustrations ensure that readers will gain a wonder and appreciation of the world around them.

Cons:  There is a lot of information for younger readers.  They might appreciate this book more if read over several sessions rather than all at once.

Published by Roaring Brook Press

Summary:  “Drip. Sip. Pour me a cup. Water is water unless…it heats up.”  Each page has a rhyme to show a different form water can take—steam, clouds, rain, snow, etc.  The brief text is beautifully illustrated by incomparable nature artist Jason Chin.  Kids will connect with the brother and sister as they experience the different forms of water in their everyday lives.  End pages give a brief explanation of the stages of the water cycle, a comparison of what percent water different animals are (humans=65%), and resources for further reading.  Preschool-grade 2.

Pros:  A perfect pairing of text and pictures that will explain the water cycle to even the youngest reader.

Cons:  The title struck me as a bit inane, but it makes more sense when you read the book.

Published by Beach Lane Books

Summary:  Did you know there are approximately 19 billion chickens on earth?  Or that chicken can run as fast as the average human (9 miles per hour)?  Learn this and much more about everyone’s favorite fowl in this informational picture book.  Most of the text is in question-and-answer format, answering the narrator’s questions when a chicken follows her home.  What do I feed my chicken?  Will my chicken lay eggs?  How can I get the eggs to turn into more chickens?The answers are straightforward and brief, most just two or three sentences.  The large, simple illustrations are the perfect complement to the text.  The final two pages answer more chicken questions and provide additional resources.  Recommended for ages 4-9.

Pros:  This is the first solo effort by Robin Page, collaborator and wife of author/illustrator Steve Jenkins.  She has put together a near-perfect informational book, simple but packed with facts.  I didn’t realize exactly what I wanted to know about chickens, but Robin did, and she got all the answers just right.

Cons:   19 billion chickens running 9 miles per hour = a nightmare.

Published by Bucking Horse Books

Summary:  Sneed B. Collard takes the reader to forests after major fires to show how birds thrive in the burned trees.  For instance, certain woodpeckers are almost never found outside of burned forests.  The wood boring beetles that lay eggs in the trees provide food for them, and the trees are perfect for the birds to make nests.  Collard profiles University of Montana professor Dick Hutto as he observes the birds, explaining how his research has helped scientists understand more about fire ecology.  More scientists are now supporting the idea that it’s better to let naturally occurring forest fires burn.  A glossary, index, and full page of additional resources are included at the end.

Pros:  This would make a great mentor text for demonstrating informational writing.  Illustrated with many photographs, the text is engaging and packed with information.

Cons:  Was Smokey the Bear really wrong about forest fires?

Published by Owlkids Books

Summary:  What is the largest fish in the sea?  The whale shark, measuring up to 60 feet long and weighing in at over 40 tons.  In contrast to its great white cousin, this shark is a gentle giant, gliding slowly through the sea and allowing divers to hold onto their fins and swimming with them for miles.  Susumu Shingu poetically describes these animals in just a dozen sentences, all illustrated in the blue and black colors of the ocean.  An end note gives more information.

Pros:  There’s quite a bit of information in this brief book.  A few sentences could be used to teach similes and metaphors.  The illustrations strikingly capture the way the light reflects off the ocean.

Cons:  Kids who usually like shark books might find the whale shark a bit of a yawn.  No blood was shed in the creation of these illustrations.

Published by HMH Books for Young Readers

Summary:  From the royal albatross, which lays one egg every two years and watches over it for almost three months, to the fish tapeworm, which lays over seven billion eggs in its 20-year life, many animals lay eggs.  This book takes a look at where and how animals lay eggs, carry and protect them, and get out of the eggs when it’s time for them to hatch.  Egg sizes are compared with pictures showing actual sizes of all kinds of eggs, and cutaway pictures show how a chicken and alligator develop over the entire incubation period.  The information is given in short snippets, several on a page, with each accompanied by a cut-paper illustration.

Pros:  This husband-and-wife team may be my favorite nonfiction author and illustrator.  They have a real knack for finding fascinating facts about the animal world and presenting them in a way that sustains interest throughout the book.  And the illustrations are phenomenal.  It’s almost incomprehensible how Steve Jenkins is able to get the level of detail into each picture using cut and torn paper.  Check out “A Look Inside How This Book Was Made” on Amazon and the short video on Jenkins’ webpage (http://www.stevejenkinsbooks.com/making_books.html) to learn more about his artistic process.

Cons:  Reading this book right before breakfast kind of put me off my scrambled eggs.

Published by Charlesbridge

Summary:  A humpback whale is traveling from the Arctic along the California coast, doing all the beautiful and majestic things humpback whales do, when she gets entangled in the ropes attached to crab traps.  Divers work to rescue her, mindful of potentially deadly dangers.  Slowly and carefully, they free her tail and fins, until she is ready to swim away.  She seems to thank them before she makes one last dive and is on her way.  Recommended for preschool to grade 2, although older kids could enjoy this.

Pros:  The spare, poetic text is beautifully illuminated by Wendell Minor’s amazing paintings.  There is plenty of information about whales as well as an exciting rescue story.  The end notes tell a more complete story of the rescue, provide more information about humpback whales, and have a wealth of resources if the reader wants to learn more.

Cons:  The books in the resources section are all several years old.