Over on my Facebook page I’ve been posting photos of flies every week – for Happy Fly Day! So how did I get to the end of summer having posted only one book about insects? Well, I shall rectify the situation immediately! Here are two very fun-to-read books from my library system.
The Bug Girl: A True Story
The Bug Book
theme: insects, nature, STEM
by Sophia Spencer with Margaret McNamara; illus. by Kerascoët
44 pages; ages 4-8
Schwartz & Wade, 2020
The first time I made friends with a bug, I was two and a half years old.
Turns out, kids think bugs are cool. Until someone tells them they aren’t. Sophie was one of those kids who thinks bugs are the best thing this side of a popsicle on a hot August afternoon. She read bug books like other kids read story books. While her friends watched cat videos, Sophie watched bug videos. And all was well until first grade… when some big kids told her she was weird and stomped on her grasshopper.
OK – let’s take a break here. Stomping on somebody’s friend is not cool, no matter how many legs they have.
What I like about this book: I love how Sophie’s mom supports her arthropod-passion. Mom connects with entomologists by email, asking for one of them to be a “bug pal”. I love the enthusiastic responses from entomologists – because, really, we are all eager to share our love of bugs with anyone! And I love the back matter! Sophie explains bugs and arthropods, provides some cool bug facts, shares her top four bugs, and gives a bunch of tips for how to study bugs in the wild.
I give this book 5 fireflies – which look kind of like stars (at night. Otherwise they look just like beetles. Which they are.).
by Sue Fliess
32 pages; ages 3-5
Grosset & Dunlap, 2016
Grab your bucket. Check your guide. Let’s go find some bugs outside.
Using rhyme, this book introduces a diversity of insects, worms, spiders, and other “bugs.”
What I like about this book: It’s fun to read. It’s filled with gorgeous photos of bugs. And it has a “don’t squish bugs” message.
Beyond the Books:
What’s your favorite bug? Draw a picture of it.
Go on a bug hike. Take along a hand lens, a camera, or just your curiosity. Look for bugs that hang out in yards, on or near trees, on flowers, in sidewalk cracks, at the park, in a stream. Write a poem about one of the bugs you find. Or write a letter to your bug.
Print out a Bug Bingo card and go for a walk. Take a pencil or crayon to check off the bugs you find. You can find a simple bingo card at Mass Audubon, or a bigger one at the Ann Arbor Hands-on Museum.
We’ll join Perfect Picture Book Friday once they resume. It’s a wonderful gathering where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review from books checked out at my library.
Sue, I LOVE your description of THE BUG GIRL! (And agree that stomping on bugs/friends is not cool). I can't wait to look at this one. What a great post - two fun bug book and some great activities. Thanks.
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