Books for the Beach

 If you’re heading to a beach – whether it’s the ocean or a lake or a towel by the backyard wading pool – you might want to take along some beach reading…

theme: ocean animals, animal behavior

Speck: An Itty-Bitty Epic 

by Margaux Meganck 

40 pages; ages 3-6

‎Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2024  

Deep in a tide pool, too small to see, countless tiny specks go forth

These tiny specks are barnacle larva, tossed by waves and carried by currents until they find a spot to grow into a barnacle. They are part of the group of tiny edible things we call “plankton” and that fish and whales call “dinner.” 

What I like about this book: the text is lyrical and soothing, like the gently rocking of a boat at sea. I like the vivid watercolor illustrations (and the sweet expressions on the barnacle faces). I also like that the larvae are looking for a place to grow and thrive, just like us. I wish there had been a smidgeon of back matter so we could learn more about these amazing animals (barnacles are crustaceans) but even so, this book will leave children thinking about the smallest bits of life in the ocean.

Where Do Ocean Creatures Sleep at Night? 

by Steven J. Simmons & Clifford R. Simmons; illus. by Ruth E. Harper 

32 pages; ages 3-7

Charlesbridge, 2024  

Ocean creatures swim in their watery home…

But when their day is done, where do they sleep? Some burrow in the sand of the ocean floor, while others cling to corals or plants. Octopuses snuggle in their dens and otters snooze on their backs. Gentle rhymes and soft illustrations make this a perfect book to read during quiet time at the beach.

Beyond the Books:

Go on a barnacle search. You’ll find them attached to ropes, rocks, docks, and even mussels. Read more about barnacles at this Woods Hole page.

If you have the opportunity to spend part of the night at a beach, do it. What do you hear? What do you see? What do you smell? How does the air feel?

Check out some of these other books that are perfect “beach reads”

• How to Code a Sandcastle    
• Seashells: More Than A Home
• Look What I Found at the Beach
• The Tide Pool Waits

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 copies provided by the publishers and Blue Slip Media (Speck).

Beach month ~ Let's go Fishing!

This is it – our last day at the beach. So I tucked two books in my tote: one about a fish, and one about the oceans that cover our planet. Have fun, and brush the sand off your feet before you come back inside.

Themes: ocean, fish, nature

Anglerfish: The Seadevil of the Deep 

by Elaine M. Alexander; illustrated by Fiona Fogg 

32 pages; ages 4-8

‎Candlewick, 2022

Far, far below the ocean’s surface, where no trace of sunlight can reach, Anglerfish makes her home.

Anglerfish may look scary, with that big mouth and sharp teeth. But she wasn’t always so big, or so toothy. Readers follow anglerfish from fry to fierce predator to releasing eggs for the next generation.

What I like about this book: I love how the dark, scary cover and the dark, mysterious illustrations bring us right into anglerfish’s deep, dark world. I really LOVE the illustration of crab trapped behind those sharp, sharp teeth. And I like how the back matter shows the ocean zones and adaptations of deep ocean fish. I also like the comparison of the different species of angler fish. I didn’t know there were so many!

Oceans : Shine-a-Light 

by Carron Brown; illus. by Becky Thorns 

36 pages; ages 4-8

‎ Kane Miller, 2022

Five great oceans ebb and flow over our planet…

When you look beneath the waves, you discover the oceans are filled with wildlife. Sometimes you have to look beneath the ice, sometimes amongst the kelp forests, and sometimes deep, down at the bottom of the dark, cold Atlantic. 

What I like about this book: Each page presents a mystery … who is hiding here? To solve the mystery, shine a flashlight behind the page or hold it up to the light to reveal what is hidden. It could be a narwal, a seal, or a turtle. It might even be a sea dragon! A map at the back shows a map of the world’s oceans and tells a bit more about them.

Beyond the Books:

Reel in a catch of books about fish and ocean stuff…. Here’s a few titles you might enjoy: Just Like Us! Fish, I See Sea Food, and Ocean Soup: A Recipe for You, Me, and a Cleaner Sea (links are to reviews)

Learn more about deep-sea anglerfish at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. 

Make a mini-ocean in a bottle. All you need are sand, shells, some small plastic ocean animals, and water. Oh, and a plastic bottle for the aquarium. Instructions here. You can find a whole bunch more ocean activities here.

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 copies provided by the publishers.

Beach Month ~ Let's Go Otter Watching!

The Secret Life of the Sea Otter 

by Laurence Pringle; illus. by Kate Garchinsky 

32 pages; ages 6-9

Astra Young Readers, 2022 

theme: otters, nature, ocean

Lutris takes a nap. She has been busy all morning, diving underwater to hunt for food.

This book shows up-close-and-personal what the daily life of a sea otter is like – and it’s not all floating in a bed of kelp. Clams may be easy to harvest, but then Lutris has to smack them open. Fortunately she has a rock for that – and a place to tuck it away safely until she needs it again. Wait! Otters have pockets? We also watch a baby sea otter grow, learn how otters communicate with each other, and how otters use strands of kelp in their child care strategy.

What I like about this book: In addition to learning about otter pockets, we learn so many other sea otter facts. Here’s a fact: I know my otter-crazy kid would have loved this book!  There is also back matter where parents (or older readers) can learn more about sea otters.

Beyond the Books:

Check out these ocean and otter-related books: Planet Ocean: Why We All Need a Healthy Ocean and If You Take Away the Otter

Do you have an Otter Pocket? Check out this short video showing how Luna uses her pocket. You can learn more about sea otters here. 

Make a paper bag sea otter puppet. Then have your otter tell a story about life in the ocean. Instructions and downloadable template for otter parts here.

Watch Sea Otters! If you don’t live close to an aquarium or ocean, check out this live Sea Otter cam. Warning: it is very relaxing.... you might just want to stay for awhile. So grab your beach chair and thermos of lemonade.

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 copy provided by the publisher.

Beach Month ~ Let's Check Out a Tide Pool!

July is Going To The Beach month – so that’s what I’m doing. All month long I’ll share new books that focus on the ocean. If you don’t have a beach nearby, fill a bin with sand for your feet, set up a beach chair and umbrella, grab some lemonade, and enjoy the books and activities.

The Tide Pool Waits 

by Candace Fleming; illus. by Amy Hevron 

40 pages; ages 4-8

‎Neal Porter Books/ Holiday House, 2022

theme: summer, ocean, nature

The waves … CR-A-A-A-A-SH in.

 And then … cr-e-e-e-e-p out. 

Swish, gurgle, trickle, drip-drip-drip.

The tide pool is waiting. Beneath the hot sun, at the pool’s bottom, creatures are waiting. What are they waiting for?

High tide! That is when the pool becomes part of the sea again – when anemones open and crabs explore. When sea cucumbers and fish get out and about. But… the sea can’t resist the pull of the moon, and too soon the tide creeps out.

What I love about this book: I love how the book starts before the tidal page (yep, that was intentional!) – and how we, along with the tide pool creatures, wait. And wait. And wait for the return of the cool ocean water. I love the language Candace Fleming uses to entice us into the tide pool, and the way Amy Hevron uses colors to fill the tide pool with life.

And I love the back matter where we get to meet the barnacles and mussels, crabs and anemones, periwinkles, snails, limpets and so, so many other wonderful creatures. There’s a section for kids who want to explore tide pools (even if they live far from the ocean), and a handy guide to where the creatures live along the tide zone.

from Rye Nature Center

Beyond the Books:

Check out these tide pool-related books: The Crab Alphabet Book, and Tide Pool (an early reader).

Visit a tide pool. If you don’t live near the ocean, you might find a tidepool tank at a science center or museum. You can also get to know tide pool creatures through videos at Life in a Tide Pool.

Choose a tide pool animal and learn more about it. If you were that animal, how would you move? Eat? Sleep? 

Make a mini-tide pool to see what happens when the water level changes. Here’s how to do this experiment.

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 galley provided by the publisher.

Beach Month ~ Let's go Beachcombing!

 July is Going To The Beach month – so that’s what I’m doing. All month long I’ll share new books that focus on the ocean. If you don’t have an ocean - or a beach -  nearby, fill a bin with sand for your feet, set up a beach chair and umbrella, grab some lemonade, and enjoy the books and activities. 

Look What I Found at the Beach 

by Moira Butterfield; illus by Jesus Verona 

32 pages; ages 2-5

‎Nosy Crow / Candlewick Press, 2022

theme: summer, ocean, nature

We’re chasing waves and having fun. 

Water sparkles in the sun. 

Look what I found!

This is the perfect book to read before you head off to the beach. It’s so fun that you’ll be tempted to tuck it in your beach tote. Part field guide and part treasure hunt, we follow three friends as they comb the beach in search of shells, stones, and sea life.

Some spreads invite you to look for specific things: a sea star, tiny fish, some shrimp. 

 Other spreads explain how to identify things, such as different kinds of crabs you might find, or types of shells.

What I like about this book: I love the scavenger-hunt lists encouraging kids to look more closely at the illustrations. And I love that this book, like the previous one (Look What I Found in the Woods) is all about observations. Look! Notice! Pay attention to the things that are similar and things that make this crab/shell/feather different from that one. And that the final thought is for collectors to be thoughtful, taking only things that have washed up onshore. 

If I rated books, I would give this one 5 sea stars. 

Beyond the Books:

Indulge in some more beach reading. Check out these STEM books for the Beach, and Melissa Stewart's wonderful book, Seashells: More Than A Home.

Write some Postcards From the Beach ~ short notes about things you see, hear, smell during your beach day. Or write a haiku. Describe a shell or the sound of the waves. Here's one I wrote inspired by the shells in my bowl.

Play a beach game. Here’s one you can play even if  you don’t have a beach nearby. You need a large beach towel and an inflated beach ball (the big ones are more fun). Have people hold the ends and sides of the towel and put the ball in the middle. Now work together to bounce the ball. See how high you can get it!

Go on a Beach Scavenger hunt. Use a camera or notebook to “collect” your findings (unless they are washed up on shore…). Find: three different kinds of shells; seaweed; ; driftwood; bird tracks; a boat; a crab or other sea creature; a sand castle; footprints in the sand; someone fishing; cries of gull; sunhat; feather; bucket and shovel; small fish; pebbles or sea glass.

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 copy provided by the publisher.