SUMMER READING
“A book can inspire a child. A child can inspire the world.”
Literacy expert Julie Wood writes,
“summer reading is critical to a child’s ability to not only retain information learned the previous year, but also to grow in knowledge and critical thinking skills for the coming year.”
I have selected 5 engaging non-fiction picture books with a nature theme to share with you. Stories of flowers and birds, wonder and friendship, families and growth. Each of these picture books has magnificent, unique illustrations. I have listed a few books by each author and illustrator for your further enjoyment.
I was curious about the authors’ histories and inspirations and the illustrators’ techniques.
I looked further.
I’ll begin with:
FLOWER TALK, HOW PLANTS USE COLOR TO COMMUNICATE
By Sara Levine, illustrated by Masha D’Yans
A vividly illustrated, humorous, non-fiction story narrated by a prickly purple cactus who wants to clear up our crazy ideas about flowers – “what a load of fertilizer.” He describes pollination in a clever way.
“PSSSSST! Did you know plants can talk?” Red flowers talk to birds, blue and purple talk to bees, yellow also talk to bees. Some white talk to moths and bats, brown communicate with flies, green flowers aren’t talking to anyone because they don’t need help.
Fun for kids to learn about pollination, and parents and grandparents to read aloud and discover the animals that help this process. This story would be a great inspiration for kids’ crafts.
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Sara Levine, author of FLOWER TALK, is also an educator and veterinarian. She is well known for her book TREASURE ISLAND!!!, which Kirkus Reviews calls “A HOOT.”
She has written science books for young children that have received many awards. They are uniquely narrated and illustrated, including:
GERMS UP CLOSE,
EYE BY EYE: Comparing How Animals See,
PEAK AT BEAKS: Tools Birds Use,
TOOTH BY TOOTH: Comparing Fangs, Tusks, and Chompers,
FOSSIL BY FOSSIL: Comparing Animal Bones .
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I was introduced to Masha D’Yan’s gorgeous illustrations in FLOWER TALK. The flowers, bees and environments are painted in vivid colors complemented by soft hues.
I was inspired to learn more about the history of her art.
Masha is a classically trained painter and graphic designer, influenced by her love of nature, Japanese art and fairy tales. Her visual story-telling is evident in the greeting cards and calendars she sells around the world. Masha has also written and illustrated children’s books, her latest is A GARDEN IN YOUR BELLY; MEET THE MICROBES IN YOUR GUT. I can’t wait to read how she explains and illustrates the gut microbiome.
Go to her website https://masha.com to view more amazing illustrations by Masha D’Yan.
We continue our journey in the natural world with AM I EVEN A BEE, by Felicity Muth, illustrated by Alexa Lindauer. A celebration of the beautiful, natural diversity of bees, and of life.
From the book flap: “Osmia, a green, unfuzzy, lone bee, at least she was told by her mom she was a bee, but “Am I even a bee?” She has an identiy crisis, then meets Xyla, a carpenter bee, who does not fit in. They meet many non-honey bees in the meadow and learn that diversity and acceptance are essential to a happy ecosystem.”
Author Felicity Muth is an Assistant Professor Department of Integrative Biology at U of Texas, Austin. Her interests are animal behavior and cognition, and is currently working with bumblebees.
Alexa Lindaur’s incredible illustrations are colorful, accurate and depict bees ‘vitality and grace.’ Alexa works at a Sierra Nevada research lab studying disease in amphibians, and currently works to restore populations of endangered frogs in CA.
How do you find a bird? 
Explore this engaging guide to bird-watching for all ages, HOW TO FIND A BIRD by Jennifer Ward, illustrated by Diana Sudyka. This celebration of birds, from giant whooping crane to tiny ruby-throated hummingbird, uses simple text and encourages children to use all of their senses.
Sounds each bird makes are clearly labeled. Sudyka uses opaque watercolors to create beautiful, realistic, brightly- colored illustrations of birds and their environments. 
So, how do you find a bird?
Move slowly, so quiet you can hear your heartbeat. Look up, down, look straight ahead, look up high, “sometimes you don’t need to find a bird, it will find you.”
Jennifer Ward is an award-winning author. Her books include:
ROUND
MAMA DUG A LITTLE DEN
MAMA BUILT A LITTLE NEST
WHAT WILL GROW
WHAT WILL HATCH
She is an avian enthusiast and veteran birder.
Diana Sudyka’s work is inspired by a passion for nature, science, and various folk art. She uses gouache, watercolor and ink to create her unique works, in books such as:
SOMETIMES RAIN
WHEN SUE FOUND SUE
WHAT MISS MITCHELL SAW
There’s more to pigeons than poop. 
In Kevin McCloskey’s giggle and learn Book, THE REAL POOP ON PIGEONS, children dressed as pigeon’s relate the facts that make them cool. They fly faster than a car and race without stopping. The artist Picasso loved pigeons so much he named his daughter Paloma, Spanish for pigeon. has something in common with the DoDo, flamingo and even the penguin. 
McCloskey includes Backmatter: Tips for Parents and Teachers, HOW TO READ COMICS WITH KIDS and TOON INTO READING, Levels 1, 2 and 3. Other giggle and learn books by McCloskey include: WE DIG WORMS!, SNAILS ARE JUST MY SPEED!, and SOMETHING’S FISHY.
Kevin McCloskey’s illustrations of kids dressed as pigeons is humorous, but they tell the facts. The pictures are painted with acrylics and gouache on a pigeon-blue Fabriano paper, the kind used by Picasso.
McCloskey taught illustration at Kutztown University in Pennsylvania. His illustrations have appeared in many newspapers, including The New York Times.
His book MRS FITZ’S FLAMINGOS was a selection of the children’s book of the month club. In 2019 he studied at ‘Ant Camp’ at University of Florida for his book ANTS DON’T WEAR PANTS. He learned about pigeons from Vinnie Torre, one of Hoboken New Jersey’s last pigeon racers.
SO YOU WANT TO BE AN OWL, the final book in this nature series, is a humorous lesson on owls, narrated by bespectacled Professor Olaf. This non-fiction book is authored and vividly illustrated by Jane Porter and Maddie Frost. 
Professor Owl welcomes his trainees to Owl school in his classroom filled with charts, graphs and lists. To join Team Owl they must follow the owl code: Be Alert! Be Watchful! Be Silent!
The facts are grouped into 9 lessons, with comical illustrations. For example, in Lesson Three: Can You See in the Dark? We learn that owls 
eyes take up 70% of the space in their skulls, can turn their heads 270 degrees to see, their eyes are tube-shaped, which makes them more sensitive to light and movement, they can’t see much color, and they have 3 eyelids. Read this interesting, humorous book to find out why.
In Lesson Four we learn that the shape of an owl’s face helps its hearing, and Lesson Seven is a HOOT!
Author Jane Porter has an MA in Illustration and animation from Kingston University. She illustrates on commission for organizations such as the Natural Trust and London Zoo, running creative workshops. Books she has illustrated include: FINS AND FLIPPERS, a non-fiction peep-through play book on marine life,
THE BOY WHO LOVED EVERYONE
PINK LION
A LITTLE BIT OF HUSH
KING OTTER
BRIAN THE BRAVE
THE PENGUINS.
Maddie Frost is a picture book illustrator from New Hampshire who attended the Mass College of Art and Design for Animation. She is inspired by simple things, and enjoys illustrating funny, silly images, as well as the more serious with a soft tone. A few of the many books she has written and illustrated: WAKEY BIRD
SMUG SEAGULLS
JUST BE JELL
CAPYBARA IS FRIENDS WITH EVERYONE
IGUANA BE A PAGAN
ANIMOBILES: ANIMALS ON THE MOOOVE.
“Books are the plane, and the train and the road. They are the destination, and the journey. They are home.
~ Anna Quindlen
Books included in this blog:
FLOWER TALK: HOW PLANTS USE COLOR TO COMMUNICATE – By Sara Levine
AM I EVEN A BEE – By 
Felicity Muth
HOW TO FIND A BIRD – By Jennifer Ward
THE REAL POOP ON PIGEONS – BY Kevin McCloskey
SO YOU WANT TO BE AN OWL – By Jane Porter and Maddie Frost