Books
This section contains 9 articles.
Autumnblings
By: Douglas Florian
Cheery watercolor illustrations combine with short, playful poems to evoke the changes that happen in the fall. It’s "Awe-Tumn" after all, when "…autumn leaves/Leave me in awe."
Corn Is Maize: The Gift of the Indians
By: Aliki
Did you know that corn is a grass? Early American Indian farmers figured out how to cultivate corn and shared their knowledge with the European settlers. Easy to read language and crisp illustrations provide a glimpse into the importance of corn throughout history.
Every Autumn Comes the Bear
By: Jim Arnosky
As the seasons change, a large black bear prepares for hibernation. In his search for a den, he startles a bobcat, a grouse, and other smaller animals. Striking watercolors and brief text, drawn from the artist’s observations of a bear behind his Vermont home, explain the balance found in nature and the cycles of life.
How the Chipmunk Got His Stripes
By: Joseph Bruchac
& James Bruchac
Illustrated by: Ariane Dewey
When Bear brags and Chipmunk teases the results are an angry bear and the transformation of a once plain brown squirrel to a striped chipmunk. Animated language and colorful illustrations tell a porquoi story – a tale that explains – that's perfect for sharing aloud.
In the Small, Small Pond
By: Denise Fleming
A child (and a small green frog) witness the change of seasons in a small, critter-filled pond. Engaging language swirls and moves across the pages in this vibrantly illustrated Caldecott Honor book.
Pumpkins: A Story for a Field
By: Mary Ray
Illustrated by: Barry Root
Warm tones are used to show one man's effort to save a beautiful field from development. With confidence and imagination, he buys and sells the field's pumpkins throughout the world. Readers will catch the point of this cautionary tale, and will likely feel that they, too, can make a difference.
The Apple Pie Tree
By: Zoe Hall
Illustrated by: Shari Halpern
An apple tree changes — as do the seasons — until the children who witness it can pick the fruit to make an apple pie. Crisp collages focus on the tree, the seasons, and the girls who experience it.
The First Strawberries: A Cherokee Story
By: Joseph Bruchac
Illustrated by: Ann Vojtech
Seeing that man is sorry after arguing with his wife, Sun sends the first strawberries to the land. The sweet fruit slows the wife down, allowing her husband to catch up and apologize. To this day, strawberries remind people to be kind to each other. Rich illustrations add interesting details to this fluid telling of a traditional legend.
Too Many Pumpkins
By: Linda White
Illustrated by: Megan Lloyd
While growing up, Rebecca Estelle ate so much pumpkin in so many ways she grew to hate them. When she buried the pumpkin that accidentally fell into her yard to be rid of it, the humorous results benefited the entire community in many ways. Lighthearted illustrations add comic detail.