Reviews (3)

Great for beginners!
This is an extremely handy book for making super quick predictions on the skies.Shows all sorts of different cloud formations and what they're bringing with them.Also nice photos of thunderstorms, lightning, etc.Good one to pick up just because.

Simple, easy to read
This is a nice, simple, easy to read book on different types of clouds and weather conditions.Fast reference when you need 'em!

Great book for fledgling meteorologists
This book is a great beginners book.The text is easy to read and the pictures are beautiful.It came in particularly handy for my cloud physics class in which I had to keep a cloud journal. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Clouds    2. Earth Sciences - Meteorology & Climatology    3. Juvenile literature    4. Nature/Ecology    5. Science    6. Weather    7. Climatology    8. Nature / Weather   

Reviews (3)

For young art lovers
On library day at school my daughter usually brings home an art book of some kind.Most of the time it was a book by Lee J. Ames.Marissa really wants to draw well but at 8 doesn't understand that you have to work hard at it.I suggested to her that she get a piece of white paper and trace over the drawings and then color them in.She has really made some beautiful drawings using this book.

Not a good book
I am a horrible but determined artist. I have enjoyed the "How to Draw 50..." series since I was very young. However, this particular book is not helpful: majority of the drawings are far too intricate to follow, most of them are unknown plants and flowers, and it fails to teach something.
Draw 50 Flowers, Trees and Other Plants
This is a great instructional book. It takes you step by step thru the process. I would reccommend it to anyone starting out in drawing. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Art    2. Art - Drawing    3. Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Nonfiction    4. Flower painting and illustration    5. Flowers in art    6. Juvenile literature    7. Nature - General    8. Plants in art    9. Study & Teaching    10. Technique    11. Techniques - Drawing    12. Art / Drawing    13. Drawing & drawings    14. Trees & wildflowers   

Reviews (2)

Great for the imagination
My 22-month-old loves the illustrations and is intrigued by the "reverse" thinking (a flower smelling her?)What a fun, creative and enticing book for all children!

Great Book Not Only For Grade School Kids!
I really loved the brilliant color and the way each of the reader's senses was brought out in the book.For small children the colorful pictures will be irresistible, and for school age children it is an in depth look at the way our senses enhance our everyday life. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Body, Mind & Spirit    2. Children's 4-8 - Picturebooks    3. Children's 9-12 - Poetry / Plays    4. Children's poetry, American    5. Children: Grades 4-6    6. Juvenile Nonfiction    7. Juvenile Poetry    8. Nature - General    9. Poetry    10. Poetry - General    11. Self    12. Juvenile Nonfiction / Poetry / General   

Reviews (1)

Pumpkins is great in the classroom
This book has everything you could posibably want or need in it. It is a valuable resource for the classroom for Fall activities across the curriculum. It has poems, recipes, history, and web sites listed right in it, and many other great ideas. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Nonfiction    2. Children: Grades 1-2    3. Cooking & Food    4. Fruit    5. Gardening / Horticulture    6. Juvenile Nonfiction    7. Juvenile literature    8. Pumpkin    9. Pumpkins    10. Science & Nature - Flowers & Plants   

Subjects:  1. Action & Adventure - General    2. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Fiction    3. Children: Grades 1-2    4. Fairies    5. Fiction    6. Juvenile Fiction    7. Magic    8. Nature & the Natural World - Weather    9. Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Magic    10. Weather   

Reviews (2)

A+ for Autumn
I got this book from the library - it is recommended in the book called "Books Children Love" - and I would add it to mine because I like it as much - if not more than - my 3 year old.Totally makes you experience autumn - pure poetry, and that includes the illustrations which are marvelous.

Autumn: An Alphabet Acrostic
These twenty-six acrostic poems are wonderful.I use this bookevery year in my third grade classroom.Each poem tells about anaspect of the autumn season with such detail.The pictures are amazing and very well done.This book is a keeper! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Acrostics    2. Alphabet    3. Autumn    4. Children's 4-8 - Poetry / Plays    5. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Nonfiction    6. Children: Kindergarten    7. Concepts - Alphabet    8. Juvenile literature    9. Literary recreations    10. Nature - General    11. Poetry - General    12. ABC books    13. English    14. Juvenile Nonfiction / Poetry / General   

Reviews (8)

Pulp fiction
My years spent in library school prepared me for all kinds of requests I would receive on that glorious day when I would become a children's librarian.I learned how to do reference interviews with five-year-olds and incorporate a fuzzy white mouse puppet into a preschooler storytime.I learned the best way to read "Bark, George" to screaming hoardes of children and what to do when a toddler throws up onto your carpet.I learned all of that but there were some things I didn't learn that would have been useful to know.Take ponds, for example.They're nice enough.Looking at them though you would have no idea that when you sit at an information desk in a children's room, one of the top requests you receive is, "Do you have any books on ponds?".Such questions always leave me a little stunned.You want books on ponds?Really?Why?I've never gotten a convincing answer to that question.All I know is that if I were to make a children's library from scratch, you can bet your bottom dollar that the pond and wetlands portion of the non-fiction section would be gigantic.Now sometimes people ask me for pond books and they want fiction.Picture books, to be specific.When that happens I can breathe a sigh of relief.Thanks to Denise Fleming and authors like her, there is no shortage of pond-related material out there.And when it comes to toddler storytimes, "In the Small, Small Pond" is a fine fine choice.
Wonderful Work by Denise Fleming!
I like Denise Fleming's In the Small, Small Pond because she brings back memories now of when I was a young child and was learning to read.I can remember this particular book and it's wonderful illustrations.To look at her pictures and read the action words on each page is like really being there.I can imagine the sound of a firefly's wings hovering and the sight of minnows rushing away when something disturbs the water.Her choice in words and pictures together, make this book very easy to understand and hard to forget.I like Fleming's work in The Small, Small Pond because she bases her picture book from a frog's perspective.I think this is a wonderful idea for younger children.It may answer a child's questions about, "What are animals thinking?"This type of response is good for children because it stimulates the mind into wandering, why?Denise puts such a large amount of time in effort into what she does to prepare for a story as well as what she does to make the illustrations come alive.Her careful planning and creative ideas make her books very insightful.I think Fleming contributes to children's education very well.She shows areas such as science and nature in her books.I believe that since she puts so much time and effort into her planning, then authentically contributes to a child's education.In children's literature, she opens the door for imagination.Her illustrations are done by pulp-painting and she is very willing to give ideas and instructions on how to do them yourself.I think this idea is great because it can be inspiration to children who want to be writers or illustrators.She shows there is more to illustrating a story than simply throwing together words and matching them with pencil and crayon drawings.Her creativity is what keeps children interested.Good books invite children to play with new language, give excellent reference points for future understanding and might even open windows to other cultures.I believe that this book fits two of those criteria.In the Small, Small Pond shows young children how other animals prepare for the winter.Children could look at this book and then maybe compare it to some of the animals that are around their homes and remember what Fleming said about tadpoles, minnows and frogs then make connections.Another strong point that Fleming hits is a new way to say some of the words that children might hear every day.When the frog leaps into the water and makes a "splash", a child might think of what a "splash" sounds like.At the same time, a heron "plunges" into the water and then children can compare what a "splash" and a "plunge" sound like either in their head or sound it out.Fleming also allows children to use their imagination.A reader is allowed to see what it's like from a frog's point of view.He travels from the shores of the pond to under the water to learn about what each animal does for preparation for winter.As you can see, I love Fleming's In a Small, Small Pond and recommend it to any lower grades elementary classroom library, or even your own child's library at home!

In the Small, Small Pond...
This Caldecott-winning book(a companion to Fleming's In the Tall, Tall Grass) was once one I too thought to be annoying and overrated. But when I first read this book, I was speeding through, without paying the needed attention deserved to these illustrations. And after reading about Fleming's strenuous process in making them (see Fleming's website for details), I was even more amazed, not to mention a little confused.
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Subjects:  1. Children's Baby - Picturebooks    2. Children's Books/Baby-Preschool    3. Children: Kindergarten    4. Fiction    5. General    6. Juvenile Fiction    7. Nature & the Natural World - General    8. Pond animals    9. Stories in rhyme    10. Picture books   

Reviews (1)

Both interesting and informative
I reviewed this book for The Home School Manual =============================Read more

Subjects:  1. Activity programs    2. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Nonfiction    3. Children: Grades 2-3    4. Children: Grades 3-4    5. Desert ecology    6. Juvenile Nonfiction    7. Juvenile literature    8. Science & Nature - Environmental Science & Eco Logy    9. Science & Nature - Environmental Science & Ecology    10. Science & Nature - Experiments & Projects    11. Study and teaching    12. Animals    13. Botany & plant sciences    14. Education / Teaching Methods & Materials / Science & Technology    15. Trees & wildflowers   

Reviews (4)

The simple but eloquent lesson that "Nothing ends..."
"When the Wind Stops" has a very simple beginning.After a day in which the great bright yellow sun has been shining all day the sun is getting ready to sink beneath the horizon.But as the day is coming to an end a little boy is sorry to see the day end.We learn of some of the simple things he did during the day, playing with his friend in a garden and listening to his father read him a story, and when his mother come to say good night the little boy asks, "Why does the day have to end?" Author Charlotte Zolotow ("Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present," "William's Doll") provides the answer to that eternal question and others in a similar vein in lyrical prose. A Beautiful book about the continuing nature of life . . .
I found this to be a beautifully written & illustrated book about the renewal of each day.The story begins with a little boy sad to see the day end and his mother explaining to him that the day ends so night can begin. . . The prose is soothing and imaginative . . . the message is about how they day can end for you, but it begins again in another place for someone else. . . it seems to me to be a gentle way of talking about letting go. . . letting go of the day, of the season, of the wind, of things, so that these things can carry on in a different way.I think it is a great way for a child to begin to understand about the finite nature of life.Also, is addresses the immediate and strong feeling of my toddler of NO NIGHT NIGHTS!!!The prose is so soothing and imaginative it actually lulled my child to sleep.The illustrations are colorful and beautiful.An EXCELLENT book.

A Story That Clears the Fog on Difficult Concepts
In easy language with good illustrations, this book will help children tounderstand why the day has to end, where the wind goes when it stops, wherethe waves go when they break on the sand, where does the rain go,etc.Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Fiction    2. Children: Kindergarten    3. Fiction    4. Nature    5. Nature & the Natural World - General    6. Juvenile Fiction / General    7. Picture books   

Reviews (10)

A family favourite along with summer
Two children, a boy and girl, experiment with the lovely things you can do with snow. It is in simply rhyming verse and is a great beginner book for children readers, the expectation of what words are to come are fairly obvious
Great winter classic
I read this book all the time when I was young and was quite thrilled to have found it for my little one.It's so neat to read what is possible to do in the snow, all the while describing it in a rhyme.My favorite part is when they go skiing and the dog slides down on his tail!He's the first to discover the snow and gets his little child friend to come out and play.They go from there and it is just very, very cute.Especially in the end when they put an umbrella on the biggest snowman so he wouldn't melt, but wind up putting snowballs in the freezer to play with another day.Highly recommend!

Rhyming winter book
Two kids play in the snow and tell us what they're doing in rhymes, from skiing, to making snow angels, to building an igloo.The text has the flavor of Dr. Seuss, although the actions and the cartoon characters are all down-to-earth and believable- -no wild and crazy critters or plants like you might see in a real Dr. Seuss book.The story is not at all scary, and it's a decent book about winter that beginning readers can handle.It has about 300 words. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's 4-8 - Fiction - General    2. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Fiction    3. Children: Babies & Toddlers    4. Fiction    5. Nature & the Natural World - Weather    6. Readers - Beginner    7. Snow    8. Juvenile Fiction / General   

Reviews (1)

Fruits and Vegetables
The thing that I really like about this book was that all the sentences weren't the same. It did not just say "these are bananas, these are tomatoes" all the time, but integrated questions, and even characteristics of the fruits and vegetables. The pictures are bright and colorful, and made me want to go buy a piece of fruit right then. I would highly recommend this book as a useful and practical tool for learning the names of basic fruits and vegetables in both English and Spanish. It is very likely that you will find yourself practicing these words at home when you are eating a piece of watermelon, or chopping a pepper for dinner. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Nonfiction    2. Children: Kindergarten    3. Concepts - General    4. Foreign Language Study - Spanish    5. Health & Daily Living - Diet & Nutrition    6. Juvenile Nonfiction    7. Science & Nature - Flowers & Plants    8. Spanish: Grades 1-2   

Editorial Review

In this quietly affecting story, award-winning author Karen Hesse and artist Jon J. Muth deftly capture the magnificence of a sudden rainstorm on a swelteringly hot day. Much more than a simple tale of weather, Read more

Reviews (17)

"Come On, Rain!"A Truly Beautiful Book!
I found the book "Come On, Rain!" at our local library and immediately picked it up. The first thing you will notice about this beautiful book are the gorgeous ilustrations!The pictures in this book are lovely and the prose is so happy and full of the anticipation everyone feels on a hot summer day while waiting for a cooling rain. You and you children will love this book!

Lyrical picture book
This lyrical ode to the coming rain, accompanied by the soothing wash of lush watercolors, make Hesse's Come on, Rain! sure to please young children.In prose that reads like poetry, young Tessie bemoans the heat of summer while waiting with confidence that rain will soon come.Along with her multicultural friends and all their mammas, Tessie dances in gratitude for the refreshing wetness the rain bestows.While the lyrical prose is of such beautiful quality it could stand on its own, the soft watercolor illustrations portray the emotions of the characters in such lovely detail; the two, the prose and illustrations, combine to create a delightful work of art.Even with the vertical lines of rain which one would expect to stop the motion of the story, Muth manages to create a sense of flowing from left to right, page to page, in keeping with the cadence of the text by using achromatic colors for the backgrounds of most pages.Recommended for children ages 4-8.Public librarians may want to share this title in a storytime about rain, along with Bill Martin's Listen to the Rain.

This is more than just another weather story!
"Come on, rain!" are the fervent words of Tess, as she looks toward the sky with a great deal of anticipation and hope. It has not rained in 3 weeks. Therefore, everyone in Tess's neighborhood and city was hoping for rain to bring relief from the scorching heat. Well, the best part of this story is that it seems her fervent words finally reached the clouds; for "over rooftops, past chimneys, into the way off distance . . . clouds came rolling in." As soon as Tess realizes that her wish for rain was on the way, she quickly gathers her close friends together (and their mothers too) to run, dance and play in the wonderful rain showers that fall upon the city.Read more

Subjects:  1. African Americans    2. Children's 4-8 - Picturebooks    3. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Fiction    4. Children: Kindergarten    5. Fiction    6. Juvenile Fiction    7. Mothers and daughters    8. Nature & the Natural World - General    9. Rain and rainfall    10. Short Stories    11. Summer    12. Juvenile Fiction / Social Situations / Friendship   

Reviews (22)

Lord God, what a book!
At the risk of sounding blasphemous let me simply say "Lord God, what a book!" This book belongs on your MUST READ list!
Engrossing Non-fiction
I picked this book up based on recommendations from online reader groups who said it would read more like fiction than non-fiction.They were right!Hoose has meticulously researched the plight of the "Lord God Bird", the ivory-billed woodpecker, documenting the efforts to locate the dwindling population and the sad effects of man vs. nature.Well highlighted by photographs, we follow the loss of this magnificent creature as its habitat is swallowed up by man's greed in the first half of the twentieth century.Hoose's writing is vivid and engrossing and caused me to do that rarest of things---go online and research more for myself.Most interesting of all is that just after this book was published, there have been reports of the rediscovery of the ivory-bill!This is a wonderful book appropriate for people of all ages and especially those who are worried about the endangerment of species by mankind's shortsightedness.Recommended!

The Lord God Bird
I thought that this book was well written, reasearched, and thought through. But as a 12 year old I didn't enjoy it quite as much as i think an older person would. I think that the author wrote the stories well, and made them very drawing. This book was not one of my favorite books, partially because it was very hard to read. The other reason was beause to me it was a bit confusing. I could see him doing a kids version of the same book, but making it a bit simpler or shorter. I thought that the author did a great job in writing this book, but I think you should wait to read it until you are a bit older. Some people I know thought it was a great book, but they're older than me. So again I thought that this was an o.k. book, but not a great kid's read. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Animals - Birds    2. Birds & Birdwatching - General    3. Children's Books/Young Adult Misc. Nonfiction    4. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    5. Endangered species    6. Environmental Studies (Young Adult)    7. Ivory-billed woodpecker    8. Ivory-billed woodpeckers    9. Juvenile Nonfiction    10. Juvenile literature    11. Nature    12. Science & Nature - Environmental Conservation & Protection    13. Science & Nature - Environmental Science & Ecology    14. Woodpeckers    15. Juvenile Nonfiction / Science & Technology / Environmental Science & Ecology   

Reviews (2)

Our girls LOVE this fairy book
The illustrations are really nice. Beautiful.Our 3 preschool daughers are very into fairies right now and they LOVE this book.They love the stories associated with all the flowers.Part of me would think the book would be a bit old for them, but not at all. They love it and want to read it over and over and over.

Enhanced pictures, cute text
My 5-year old enjoyed this introduction to the flower fairy friends. It takes the lovely drawings of Cicely Mary Barker and places them with photographs of flowers, and combines them in different ways. It is neatly done. The text describes the different fairies and what their personalities are like. It is sweet but uninspired. We're looking forward to reading others id the Flower Fairy Friends series. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Nonfiction    2. Children: Grades 2-3    3. Children: Kindergarten    4. Fairy Tales & Folklore - General    5. Fairy poetry, English    6. Flowers    7. Gardens    8. Juvenile Fiction    9. Juvenile poetry    10. Nature & the Natural World - Environment    11. Poetry - General    12. Science & Nature - Flowers & Plants    13. Character books    14. Fiction    15. Gift books for children    16. Juvenile Fiction / Fairy Tales & Folklore / Single Title    17. Picture books   

Reviews (1)

A Fabulous Teaching Resource for all Elementary School Grade
I use this book in elementary classrooms as an anticipatory set for thinking about patterns before we make a math pattern game.It works as well with 6th gradeers as it does with 3rd graders.They begin to look at their surroundings using a different paradigm! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Animals - General    2. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Nonfiction    3. Children: Grades 1-2    4. Children: Grades 2-3    5. Juvenile Nonfiction    6. Juvenile literature    7. Natural history    8. Nature - General    9. Pattern perception   

Reviews (36)

STRANGER IN THE WOODS
I love this book, the photography is wonderful. All the colors are vibrant and so lifelike. I also purchased the DVD, love it too !

Winter Classic
I read this book to an active Kindergarten class and they were completely engaged!We were celebrating the first day of winter so it tied in nicely with the snow, sledding, and snowman theme.The photographs are beautiful but, what the children enjoyed most was the animals voices in the story.Each animal "talks like it sounds" in nature.For example the mourning dove's "Coo-coo-could that be him?"
A sundae to the eyes!
You don't have to be a child to enjoy this book. The photos are breath-taking. I put the book on my coffee table for my guests- children and adults to enjoy. What a conversational piece! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Animals    2. Animals - General    3. Children's 9-12 - Fiction - General    4. Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Fiction    5. Children: Grades 4-6    6. Fiction    7. Food    8. Forest animals    9. Juvenile Fiction    10. Nature & the Natural World - General    11. Snowmen   

Subjects:  1. Children's 9-12 - Science    2. Children: Grades 2-3    3. Ecology    4. Extinct animals    5. Fiction    6. Teaching Methods & Materials - Science & Technology    7. Wildlife conservation    8. Fiction dealing with environmental issues    9. The environment   

Reviews (1)

The Perfect Birthday Gift for Kids
A Birthday Cake Is No Ordinary Cake is a cake recipe, science lesson, appealing children's book, and perfect birthday gift all rolled into one.I really enjoyed it.Debra Frasier's colorful illustrations seem to jump right off the page.The book unfolds as an interactive cake recipe listing all the things that you will need to collect in one year to make a birthday cake, including the first sunrise after your birthday and continuing through an entire year of natural phenomenon.Children learn about the seasons and about the earth's rotation around the sun while celebrating all the fun of birthdays and cakes.Kids love this book, and best of all it's perfect for bringing to birthday parties. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Birthdays    2. Cake    3. Children's 4-8 - Fiction - General    4. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Fiction    5. Children: Kindergarten    6. Concepts - Time    7. Fiction    8. Holidays & Celebrations - Birthdays    9. Holidays & Celebrations - Other, Nonreligious    10. Juvenile Fiction    11. Nature & the Natural World - General    12. Preschool Picture Story Books    13. Year    14. Interactive & activity books & packs    15. Juvenile Fiction / Nature & the Natural World   

Reviews (2)

Accurate, Beatiful
If you're looking for an accurately-colored, beautiful companion to your wildflower walks, this is the "book." It can be a bit awkward on long hikes, but children love to carry it.

breathtaking!
Each color card is cut to the shape of a different wildflower.Like having a bouquet that never goes brown.Should have been scratch-n-sniff! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Nonfiction    2. General    3. Nature    4. Reference    5. Science & Nature - Flowers & Plants    6. Juvenile Nonfiction / Nature / Flowers & Plants   

Reviews (3)

the life of a frog
Frogs are fascinating creatures.It seems children especially develop a fondness for them.This is a book that teaches children everything they'd want to know about frogs, and more importantly about how frogs start off as tadpoles before turning into frogs.If you have a child and he or she likes playing with frogs, give them this book.

Another Great Kids' Book
This is another great STAGE 1 book in the "Let's Read & Find Out" Science Series. The STAGE 1 Series books are written for preschool and kindergarten-age kids (age 3 to 6) about basic science concepts. very good
This book is very appropriate for any young one learning about frogs. My nephew has learned alot from this book about where frogs come from. The pictures are real and not drawings which I like. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Amphibians    2. Animals - Reptiles & Amphibians    3. Children's Books/Baby-Preschool    4. Children: Preschool    5. Development    6. Frogs    7. Juvenile literature    8. Metamorphosis    9. Nature - General    10. Science & Nature - General    11. Tadpoles    12. Juvenile Nonfiction / Science & Technology / General