From Soup to ... Tortillas!

 Theme: food, traditions, family

Everyone has Day-after-Thanksgiving traditions. In my family it is making soup and putting turkey meat into freezer containers to use in chili and burrito mixes later. So… I thought today would be the perfect day to share two books about Food and Traditions. Let’s start with soup, because some of us already have the turkey carcass in the pot simmering away!

Soup's On Around the World (Taste the World) 

by Denyse Waissbluth; illus by Chelsea O'Byrne 

40 pages; ages 4-8

‎Greystone Kids, 2025

Soup’s on. A tasty treat. Fill your bowl. Time to eat!

Page by page, readers travel around the world sipping soups from different regions and cultures. Hot soup from Thailand, cold soup from Spain. Soup as orange as pumpkin or as red as beets. Sweet soup, bitter soup, soup made from clams – and chicken soup to cure whatever ails you.

What I like about this book: Rhyming language introduces the different soups, but not by name. On one page we’re invited to bring veggies ~ it’s for minestrone, a thick vegetable soup that has no rules! Just toss in any vegetables you have, along with some pasta. (It sounds a lot like my “refrigerator” soup). There are other soups that are cooked in a large communal pot – enough for all! Back matter includes a bit of soupy history and the favorite recipes of the author and illustrator. Yum!

Some of our turkey meat goes into the soup, but some is frozen to make meals later. My favorite is black bean & turkey burritos. But before we can roll up the burritos, we need to make tortillas. Maybe this next book will help?

Tia Sofia and the Giant Tortilla (Mi Hermosa Familia/My Beautiful Family) 

by Felicia Cocotzin Ruiz; illus by Carlos Vélez Aguilera 

32 pages; ages 3-7

‎Gibbs Smith, 2025

My name is Luna, and I want to tell you about my Tia Sofia and the giant tortilla.

Tia Sofia is an artist with a wild streak. She also wants some help rolling out the tortilla dough, so Luna and her little brother, Sol, roll out the masa to some music. It’s messy, and bits of dough and flour end up in the oddest places. But it’s Tia Sofia who gets carried away and rolls out a tortilla SO big it could be used as a superhero’s cape!

What I like about this book: Luna and Sol have great imaginations and come up with at least half-a-dozen uses for a giant tortilla. This will certainly inspire kids to think about what they might do with a giant tortilla. Or a giant cookie, biscuit, or pancake – depending on what they might make in their home. I also like how Spanish words are integrated into the story. Back matter includes a seek-and-find challenge and a recipe for Tia Sofia’s flour tortillas.

Beyond the Books:

Make your own turkey soup, starting with the left-over turkey. First thing we do is take the meat off the bones and pop the carcass in a big pot – along with onion, celery, carrots, and herbs – to simmer for 3 or 4 hours. Meanwhile, we sort the meat into some for sandwiches, some for chili and burritos, and some for the soup. Homemade turkey soup recipe here.

Make your own tortilla (giant or regular size). Here’s a recipe that’s easy to follow. They use it to make a nut butter and jelly sandwich – or maybe a quesadilla (grilled cheese).

Everyone has a favorite kind of soup. Ask your family and friends (or classmates) what kind of soup they like the best. Then make a chart showing how many people like each kind of soup. My favorite: bean soup with ham or kielbasa in it.

Today we’re joining Perfect Picture Book Friday. It’s a wonderful gathering where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copies provided by the publishers.

Explore Outdoors ~ what's THAT under my blueberry leaf?

 

I love the way my blueberry leaves turn brilliant red in the fall! So the other day I was trying to capture the color when I noticed this egg sac sheltered beneath a leaf. Someone more knowledgeable about spiders than I am suggested that it was a yellow garden spider, Argiope aurantia - which makes sense since there were many of them inhabiting my garden this summer.

According to what I've read, there can be hundreds of eggs inside, and they hatch in late fall or early winter. But rather than dispersing, the spiderlings go into diapause (a dormant state) and emerge the following spring. If they all live (which they won't) I'll have plenty of pest-munching spiders in my garden! Bug Eric has a great post about them here. 

Do you have any spiders hanging around your yard? 

Scales and Tails and long, flicking tongues!

 

Flick! The Truth About Lizards 

by Annette Whipple

32 pages; ages 8-12

‎Reycraft Books, 2025

theme: animals, lizards, nonfiction

The flicking tongue. The color-changing skin. The watchful eyes…

Geckos, iguanas and skinks are just some of the reptiles that scientists have grouped into a category they call “lizards.” In this book, Annette introduces readers to lizard secrets: why they flick their tongues, where they live, and what they eat.

What I like about this book: I like the way Annette begins each section with a question, like “what good are lizards’ toes?”  I love the photographs that capture lizards at their scaly-est. And there are extra facts on each spread under “scales & tails” where we can discover things like how geckos can hang upside down. Back matter includes caring for a lizard as a pet, an introduction to some scaly superstars, a hands-on exploration of how chameleon tongues work, and a glossary. 

Beyond the Books:

Make a 3-D paper lizard with a roly tail – it’s fun to make. Here’s a video showing how 

Check out the lizard and reptile hands-on STEM activities at Growing With Science blog – including one about how lizards warm up in the sunshine.

Do lizards live in your backyard? Here are the most common lizards that live in the United States. If you can’t find any living around your neighborhood, maybe a nearby zoo has a reptile house with lizards.

Could gecko feet help us walk on slippery surfaces?  Here’s how gecko feet work (a National Geo Kids video). Inspired by gecko footpads, some scientists are developing a material that could be used in shoe soles to prevent slips and slides. What feature of lizards inspires you to create something?

Thanks for dropping by today. On Monday we'll be hanging out at Marvelous Middle Grade Monday with other  bloggers. It's over at Greg Pattridge's blog, Always in the Middle, so hop over to see what other people are reading. Review copy provided by the publisher.

 

 

Explore Outdoors ~ after rain

 I walk in all kinds of weather, but taking pictures in the rain is tough. So I like to wait until the rain stops, and then capture those elusive raindrops. These photos were taken last month in Boston. 

Go on a Raindrop Walk in your neighborhood!

 

White House Secrets are Not a New Thing!

 

White House Secrets: Medical Lies and Cover-Ups (Medical Fiascoes) 

by Gail Jarrow 

288 pages; ages 10-17

Calkins Creek, 2025

Given all the political goings-on this year, this seems like a perfect time for a book about White House secrets to hit the shelves. And a perfect time to reflect on the medical fiascoes that have occurred during past presidencies. With that in mind, let’s head up to Capitol Hill – or at least open the cover of the book and dive in.

Did you know that eight US presidents died in office? And that more than a third of our presidents became seriously ill during their term in office? “Yet,” writes Gail Jarrow, “Americans were deliberately kept in the dark… Lies were told. Cover-ups were orchestrated.”

Gail writes from the position that Americans have a right to know whether their elected leader is healthy enough to perform the duties of his office. But sometimes family members hide health problems. Sometimes it’s presidential aides hiding their leader’s infirmities. And sometimes it’s the president himself – whether out of self-preservation or denial.

When James Garfield died of an infected gunshot wound, his vice president, Chester Arthur took over. Unfortunately, he had a kidney disease that resulted in fatigue, among other issues. Meanwhile, he staged photo opportunities to show himself as a hale and hardy outdoorsman, writes Gail.

Gail also examines the presidencies of Grover Cleveland, Woodrow Wilson, Warren Harding, FDR, John F. Kennedy, Ronald Regan, and Joe Biden. The first page of each chapter includes fast facts: dates elected, biographical information, and their term in office. Within the chapter, Gail discusses the politics surrounding their presidencies, their health issues, legal and political ramifications, and what happens when a president is incapable of making decisions. 

I particularly liked the last chapter, in which Gail talks about the influence of a president on the American people, and reasons why they hid their health problems. “Grover Cleveland feared his cancer diagnosis would trigger a financial crisis,” she notes. Others have kept serious illnesses secret to “maintain power and prevent the vice president from taking over.”

The thing is, Gail points out, that there is no law that requires a candidate or sitting president to take a physical or cognitive test to prove that they are capable of performing the duties of the office. And asking for transparency about a president’s health raises a lot of questions. For example, is the president’s right to privacy more important than the public’s right to know medical details? Should certain medical conditions be disqualifying?

This book is a great resource for teachers and school libraries, offering jumping-off point for discussions and debates about history, politics, health, and ethics. I give it a rating of 5 stethoscopes. 

The Medical Fiascoes series includes Blood and Germs, which follows the advances in medicine during the Civil War and American Murderer about the parasite that haunted the south, which I reviewed here.

Thanks for dropping by today. On Monday we'll be hanging out at Marvelous Middle Grade Monday with other  bloggers. It's over at Greg Pattridge's blog, Always in the Middle, so hop over to see what other people are reading. Review copy provided by the publisher.

Explore Outdoors ~ Home, from a leaf's point of view

 The other day I got to wondering: what does a fallen leaf think? So I got down to the level of an oak leaf and looked at the world from its point of view. What was it looking at? 

Home! Or at least the home it used to have before the big wind storm... 

 

 

 

What do you discover when you look at the world from the vantage point of the leaves (or flowers) in your yard?

Bam! Ka-boom! Bu-u-urp! The Carbon Cycle

 

From BAM! to BURP!: A Carbon Atom's Never-Ending Journey Through Space and Time and YOU 

by Melissa Stewart; illus. by Marta Alvarez Miguens 

40 pages; ages 5-8

‎Charlesbridge, 2025

themes: atoms, carbon cycle, science

You’ve probably heard of atoms. They’re the tiny particles that make up almost everything we know in the Universe (including you).

Here’s the thing about atoms: they never disappear. They just keep moving from one thing to another, from one creature to another … from leaves to dinosaurs to fish to … us!

Melissa Stewart takes readers on a journey through the carbon cycle, beginning with a big crash (that’s the BAM of the title) – when a small rocky planet crashed into Earth. Bits of that planet melted, and the atoms (including carbon) rearranged into new molecules – like carbon dioxide spewed out of the cone of a volcano during eruption. In her book, Melissa shows that molecule eventually getting sucked up by a leaf. Once the carbon dioxide is broken down, that carbon atom is used to make glucose – hooray for photosynthesis! And carbon is happy – whoops! I spoke too soon because a long-necked dinosaur just came by and ate that leaf!

What I like about this book: I like how Melissa makes the journey of a carbon atom seem like such an adventure. And how she asks readers to think about where a carbon atom they exhale or burp might go next. I like the “Wonder Wall” she has at the end of the book – a wall full of post it notes with questions (and, thankfully, answers). Additional back matter explains more about the carbon cycle, fossil fuels, and climate change.

After reading this book, I had One Question for Melissa:

Me: In your author note you mention that a kid's question inspired you to trace the path of a carbon atom from us all the way back to dinosaurs and beyond. And this isn't the only time a kid's question has inspired a book (I think aardvark started that way?) - can you talk about the value of listening to the questions kids ask and how they've inspired your own curiosity?

Melissa: I like your question a lot! Yes, my book Can an Aardvark Bark? was inspired by a question from my nephew, Colin. Key aspects of Thank You, Moon and Summertime Sleepers also trace back to experiences with my niece, Caroline, and my nephew, Emile, respectively. Since children are my audience, I always pay close attention to their opinions and ideas. What excites them? What makes them curious? What leaves a lasting impression? I want to understand how they see the world and their place in it, so that my books will truly resonate with them.

Beyond the Books:

Make a list of things you find in your house and around your yard that have carbon in them. (hint: living things have carbon, some rocks have carbon)

Experiment with Fizzy Drink science! You need some fizzy drinks (diet cola works) and some mints (mentos work) and a place where it’s okay for messy science to happen. Here’s a video about carbonation science.

Got rocks? Some rocks, like limestone, have carbon atoms in their make-up. You can test whether rocks have carbon in them by dropping some hydrochloric acid – or even strong vinegar – on them. If they have carbon, they will fizz or foam. Those hard water deposits on your tea kettle are probably calcium carbonate. Go ahead – toss vinegar on them to test. Another good source to test for carbon: baking soda!

Melissa is a member of the STEAM Team Books group. You can find out more about her at her at her website melissa-stewart.com. You can find more about recently released STEM and STEAM at www.steamteambooks.com

Today we’re joining Perfect Picture Book Friday. It’s a wonderful gathering where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy provided by the publisher.

Explore Outdoors ~ Wandering Caterpillars

 Maybe you saw some cute, furry caterpillars wandering across your yard a few weeks ago? They look so fuzzy and cute - but don't pick this one up! Unlike the friendly woolly bear, this hickory tussock moth's hairs will sting. The hairs contain a mild venom that can cause an itchy rash on your skin. Those irritating hairs help protect the caterpillars from predators such as birds and bats. 

You can find out more about the hickory tussock moth at What's That Bug.

Are there any late fall caterpillars still wandering around? 

Go on a caterpillar hunt (remember to leave them alone, though. They're looking for a place to spend the winter!)