Exploring the Earth and Beyond

I have SO many books to share that I need to start talking about more than one at a time!

themes: nonfiction, scientists, ecology

Rock Star: How Ursula Marvin Mapped Moon Rocks and Meteorites 

by Sandra Neil Wallace; illus. by Nancy Carpenter 

48 pages; ages 5-9

‎Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books. 2025

Ursula grew up in a small Vermont village with big mountains to explore. They wrapped around her house like a crescent moon.

During the winter, Ursula loved skiing by moonlight. In the summer, she helped collect potato beetles with her father, the state’s entomologist. But Ursula wanted to be an explorer, not a scientist. Until… she looked at a rock under a microscope.

Despite being discouraged by professors, Ursula went on to study geology. She got so good at recognizing minerals, that she became one of the first geologists to study the rocks the Apollo astronauts brought back from the moon. She studied bits of meteorites, too – an interest that led her to Antarctica.

What I like about this book: It’s a polar adventure and a story of discovery of a bit of the moon that landed on earth. Lots of kids dream of being an explorer – so reading about a real expedition to Antarctica to look for meteorites might be the perfect story. Back matter includes more about Ursula, facts about Antarctica, and a timeline of Ursula’s life and discoveries. I especially like that the author, Sandra, talks about the research she did to bring this story to the page.

The Big Empty: A Sagebrush Survival Story 

by Kirbi Fagan 

32 pages; ages 5-10

‎Millbrook Press, 2025

People passing by call this land the big empty. But I call it home. 

In spare and poetic text, accompanied by lush paintings, Kirbi Fagan reveals the secrets of the shrubby desert.

What I like about this book: I grew up in the land of sagebrush and never thought about the desert from the sagebrush’s point of view. But that’s exactly what this book does. Back matter explains more about the sagebrush (there’s more than one kind!) and highlights a handful of animals inhabiting the western shrublands. This book might make you want to pack a tent and a few gallons of water and head out to sleep with the sage. Where, if you are lucky, you may see meteorites streak across the sky at night.

Beyond the Books:

Meet two scientists who work with moon rocks at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcvqhhCYzAo

Explore like a scientist. If you like rocks, use a magnifying lens to look closely at a rock in your environment. If you like plants, take a close look at a shrub or (if you’re lucky and have one) sagebrush. Draw pictures of what you see and make a list of words that describe what you’re looking at..

Tell a story about a place from the point of view of something found in that environment: a rock or mountain, a plant or animal… or even something falling from the sky and landing there.

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 and Blue Slip media (Rock Star)

Explore Outdoors ~ in a new place

 Most of my exploring outdoors happens right outside my back door: in the garden or along roadsides I ramble. Usually within a three-mile radius of my home. My goal is to find something of beauty each day. Then last month I had the opportunity to travel somewhere new...

I boarded a train and headed out west. On the trip out, it was fall. A couple weeks later, on my return trip, we were treated to a dusting of snow on the red rocked landscape of southern Utah. 

If you have the opportunity to travel this winter, take some time to sit with the landscape. And look for some of the earth's beauty surrounding you.

Two new National Geographic Readers

My kids loved listening to stories, and picture book read-alouds were our favorite time of the day. But there came a time when they wanted to find out stuff on their own – to read about bugs and animals that live nearby or far, far away. That’s one reason I love sharing books from the National Geographic Readers series. The other reason: they are filled with gorgeous photos that will have kids poring over the furry, fuzzy, or scaly details.

So here are two recently released titles.

In the Desert, by Michaela Weglinski is a short (24 page) book perfect for kids who are “ready to read.” The book features animals – and a few plants – from dry places around the world. It’s more than camels: there are fennec foxes, lizards, big cats, small birds. The text is large, with each sentence focusing on a specific fact. For example, “The cactus stores the water in its thick stems.” That photo features a diversity of cacti in the Sonoran Desert (USA), with an example pointing out where the stems are. This is helpful, since cactus stems look nothing like rose stems, despite them both being rather prickly.

What I like about this book: Did I mention the photos? Well, let me mention them again! They are filled with textures, from grainy sand to needle-sharp cactus spines to the fluffy coat of a snow leopard. Wait! What’s a snow leopard doing in the desert? That is one of the cool things kids will learn about. I also like the Vocabulary Tree at the beginning – with lists of words for Things in the Desert and How Deserts Feel.

Rainforests, by Andrea Silen is a 32-page book that is perfect for kids who are reading independently (but need occasional help with new words). Rainforests may cover only a small amount of the planet, but they have more unique plants and animals than anywhere else on Earth. And the photos in this book show some of those amazing flowers and frogs, birds and butterflies that inhabit the layers of a rainforest.

What I like about this book: There’s a table of contents, so kids can see what topics are included at a glance. And there’s a fun quiz at the back. There are those amazing, detailed photos full of color and texture. And there are plenty of text boxes that share information, show how to pronounce a word, or contain a joke. What do you call a clouded leopard on a rainy day?

Thank you to Tracey Daniels at Media Masters Publicity for review copies.

Canyons, Grand and Small

 I grew up hiking canyons in the southwest: the Grand Canyon, Zions, Bryce Canyon, and all the mountain canyons our family could hike along the Wasatch front. Now I live in the east – and guess what! There are canyons here, too. Like this one, at Taughannock State Park. 

So I was eager to read Kate’s book…

Over and Under the Canyon 

by Kate Messner; illus. by Christopher Silas Neal 

56 pages; ages 5-8

Chronicle Books, 2021  

theme: animals, desert, nature

High above, Swainson’s hawks soar, circling in the morning-blue sky.

Mom and kid are off on a hike – down, down, down into the magical world of a desert canyon. “What’s down there?” the kid asks. It’s a world of its own, mom replies. There are geckos and snakes, rabbits and roadrunners, kit foxes and cactus wrens.

What I like about this book: I love the adventure of exploring a new place (even if through the pages of a book). And I love the diversity of animal and plant life Kate Messner highlights. But even more, I love the verbs she uses: hawks soar and circle; stones crunch underfoot; beetles skitter. An eagle swoops. A gecko scoots. Mom and the kid scramble and squeeze over and around rocks. And I love that there is Back Matter: an author’s note about where this canyon is, and notes about the plants and animals featured in the book.

Beyond the Books:

Find out where there are canyons near you. Here are some of the more well-known canyons in the United States. But you might find a small, secret canyon in your neck of the woods.

Find out more about desert plants and animals. Here’s one resource to get you started.

Today we're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy provided by the publisher.

Not a Bean

Not a Bean 
by Claudia Guadalupe Martinez; illus. by Laura Gonzalez
32 pages; ages 3-7
Charlesbridge, 2019 

theme: nature, caterpillars, plants

Next to the arroyo a seedpod grows on the yerba de la fleche, a desert shrub.

This is no ordinary seedpod, for when it hardens and falls to the ground it begins to jump. It rocks and rolls right into the shade. That’s because there’s a caterpillar inside – a caterpillar that doesn’t want to get too hot

What I like about this book: It’s a counting book! As the jumping bean moves through the landscape, it passes two saguaros, three snakes, four coyotes. But wait! it gets better porque algunas palabras son españolas. So it’s partly a language book. Hay dos saguaros, cuatro coyotes… and, after a bit of not-a-bean adventure, siete amigos who play a traditional bean game. And it’s very much a nature book about the life of a caterpillar that lives inside this special seed.

I also like the back matter, where author Claudia Martinez provides a glossary of words in Spanish, a counting lesson, and more information on the jumping bean moths. And Laura Gonzalez's illustrations which bring the desert to life.

Beyond the Books:

Get a hold of some jumping beans (maybe you can find them in a toy store) and try a couple experiments. Shine a light on one part of a plate and create shade on another. Where do the beans go? What if you put a hot water bottle under half of a plate? Or put an ice pack under it?

What happens to jumping beans when no one is watching? Here’s one videographer’s imaginative take.

Learn to count to ten in Spanish. Here’s a fun kid’s song to help you along.

Today we're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy provided by the publisher.

Wednesday Explorers Club ~ desert plant field trip

I found this relative of a common garden weed (curly dock) in Arches National Park. Some people call it wild rhubarb, and cook it up. It is also used as a dye plant - as is the more common garden variety.

Wednesday Explorers Club ~ desert plant field trip

Some desert flowers look so dainty that you wonder how they can survive. Here are two more from Arches National Park, UT.

Wednesday Explorers Club ~ desert plant field trip

Yucca is one cool plant. Look at those creamy white flowers, and those sharp, pointy leaves. The leaves look like they're fraying on the edge... let's look closer.

Turns out those fibers are useful. But first you need to soak the leaves, pound them with a wooden mallet, and rinse away the pulp. The remaining fibers can be twisted into threads. Yucca fibers and threads have been used in making cordage, sandals, mats, clothing, nets, and baskets. You can learn more about natural fibers here.

In my garden there are milkweed plants that produce wonderful fibers. What plants do you have in your neighborhood that could be used for fiber?

Wednesday Explorers Club ~ desert plant field trip

This month we're going on a field trip to the Canyonlands area of Utah. While walking around Dead Horse Point in May, I found cacti beginning to bloom. Such dainty blooms atop prickly pads! But those spines are important adaptations. Learn more about cactus adaptations from this post about cactus spines (U of TX).

Hawk Rising and Desert Animals

Hawk Rising
by Maria Gianferrari; illus. by Brian Floca
40 pages; ages 4-8
Roaring Brook Press, 2018

themes: animal families, birds

Father Hawk stretches wide his wings.
You stretch your arms as Mars rises red in the sky.

Dawn is breaking and hungry chicks are waiting for their breakfast. Father Hawk is on the hunt! But catching food is harder than we'd think - and there are other dangers facing hawks.

What I like about this book: The alternating viewpoint between the child ("you") and the hawk. The reality of being a predator in a hawk-eat-rodent world. I love Brian Floca's muted watercolor illustrations. I love the suspense: will the hawk nestlings get a meal?

And, of course (!) I like that there is back matter. More details on the lives of red-tailed hawks: where they live, how they fly, what they eat (just about anything!) and tips on spotting a red-tailed hawk. Maria also includes suggestions for further reading as well as websites for learning more.

Over on a Desert, Somewhere in the World
by Marianne Berkes; illus. by Jill Dubin
32 pages; ages 3-8
Dawn Publications, 2018

Over on the desert resting in the hot sun, lived a tall mother camel and her little calf one.

Set to the tune of a familiar children's song, Marianne introduces readers to ten desert animals: camels, gila monsters, javelinas ..... real hot weather critters. Each spread introduces a new animal family as the number of young increase one by one to reach ten.

So why pair this book with the one above? Because hidden in one of the desert scenes is a hawk! In fact, each spread has an animal hidden in plain sight in the arid scene, but you might not find it until your second - or third - reading.

What I like about this book: It offers a wonderful opportunity to sharpen observation skills, plus we learn about desert life. I like that there's a map on each page that shows where these animals live.

The other thing I like about this book - and indeed, all Dawn books, is the back matter. There's a half page on desert facts, a challenge to find the "hidden" animals scattered through the pages, and more information about each animal family featured in the book. Plus there are activities to try!

Beyond the book:

What kinds of hawks do you have flying around your neighborhood? Here's how to distinguish a red-tailed hawk from other species.

Go on a hunt with a hawk! Here's a video from a hawk cam.

Make a hawk mask - or a mask of a desert animal.  

Today we're joining the STEM Friday roundup - and we're also joining others over at Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review ARC's from publishers.

The Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon
by Jason Chin
56 pages; ages 7-12
Roaring Brook Press, 2017

themes: nonfiction, geology, habitats

Grand Canyon is one of the largest canyons in the world. It is 277 miles long, as much as 18 miles wide, and more than a mile deep, but it's much more than just a big hole in the ground.

When I was a kid I walked down into the Grand Canyon. It was winter at the top, snowy and cold. By the time we reached the bottom we'd hiked through nearly 2 billion years (of rock layers) and it was practically summer.

So I like that Jason Chin begins this book with a family camping at the bottom of the canyon. We follow them up, up, up to the top - and along the way we're introduced to plants and animals living at the different zones. And of course, there are the rocks. Layers and layers of sediment of all different colors.

What I like love about this book: Each page is like a field trip. Margin artwork highlights geology notes, or plants and animals found in the canyon. There are spreads that take us back millions of years to when the area was beneath the sea. Condors sail by; red dust coats our hiking shoes.

I love the pages that open out to reveal a panoramic view of the Grand Canyon. And back matter (of course)! There are back notes about early humans in the canyon, as well as notes about the ecological communities (from river level to 8,200+ feet), and lots of notes about geology, fossils, and how canyons are carved. Want to know more? Then check out the books, websites, and other stuff for further exploration.

Beyond the Book:
Check out the Grand Canyon website. You can go on a virtual archeology tour or watch some videos of night sky or other cool canyon stuff.

Enjoy some armchair tourism by viewing these photos from the National Park Service collection.

Go on a (video) river rafting trip.

Today we're joining the STEM Friday roundup - and we're also joining others over at Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review ARC from the publisher.

Big Red Kangaroo

Big Red Kangaroo

By Claire Saxby; illus. by Graham Byrne

32 pages; ages 5-8

Candlewick Press, 2014

It’s cold here in upstate New York. Cold enough to have me dreaming of earth-baked sand and warm breezes. Which makes this book a perfect choice for today – especially as the illustrations are rendered in warm oranges, yellows, and reds.

Red kangaroo lives in the center of Australia, where it’s summer now. He is the leader of a mob – that’s what you call a group a females, joeys, and young males. As dusk falls, Red leads his mob in search of breakfast.

Author Claire Saxby takes us into a day with Red and his mob. Along the way she offers insights into kangaroo culture. We learn that kangaroo tails aid balance – but also act as rudders when you’re hopping full speed ahead. We meet wallaroos, thorny devils, and large lizards called goannas. We avoid dingoes and watch Red fight off a male who challenges his dominance.

This is a great book to pair with Winnie-the-Pooh – especially when you read about Kanga and Roo. For one thing, kids will discover that there are more than 60 different species of kangaroo. Even cooler: their family name is macropod, which means “big foot”. Back matter includes an author’s note and an index.

Today is STEM Friday. Head over to the STEM Friday blog to see what other bloggers are reviewing. Review copy provided by publisher.

Park Scientists: Gila Monsters, Geysers, and Grizzly Bears!

I've got a basket full of  new "Scientists in the Field" books - so this month we're heading out on some armchair field trips.

Park Scientists: Gila Monsters, Geysers, and Grizzly Bears in America’s Own Backyard

Scientists in the Field series

by Mary Kay Carson; photos by Tom Uhlman

80 pages; ages 10-14

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014

The National Park Service is nearly 100 years old (their anniversary is 2016) and for all those years the rangers and park scientists have been studying the best ways to preserve and protect the landscape, plants and animals. 

"Because national parks are protected places, researchers are able to do long-term studies of ecosystems, geysers, and climate," writes Mary Kay Carson. They don't have to worry that their natural laboratory will be clear-cut for a mall or highway project.

In this book, Carson and photographer Tom Uhlman document scientists at work in three of our most popular national parks: Yellowstone, Saguaro, and Great Smoky Mountains. She opens each section with a park brief: how big, how many visitors, when it was established, and reasons to visit. Then she takes us into the field with the park scientists.

In Yellowstone (our oldest national park, established in 1872 by Ulysses S. Grant) we head into a hot spot to learn more about why the temperatures are rising. But first, everyone has to suit up with protective clothing and heat-resistant boots. Then there's the science gear: infrared camera, temperature probes, gas detectors and more. On another trip into the field we learn how scientists apply GPS technology to track and manage grizzly bears.

Then it's down to Arizona to track Gila monsters and count cacti. From there it's a cross-country trek to the Smoky Mountains which really do live up to their name. We head into the forests on a salamander safari - the Smokies are home to more than thirty species of salamanders. Data from the salamander study indicate that a rise in the earth's temperature will erase much of the red-cheeked salamander habitat. The good news? There will be some refuges where the salamanders can thrive. 

Carson ends with an evening light show: fireflies in the Smokies. There's a wonderful glossary at the end, some sources (for those who want to dig deeper) and an index that makes it easier to revisit cool stuff you forgot to bookmark. Oh, and did I mention the abundant and awesome photos?

Check out the trailer for the book here. Then head on over to the STEM Friday blog to see what other people are reviewing. And on Monday we'll join the roundup over at the Nonfiction Monday blog where you'll find even more book reviews. Review copy provided by publisher.