Nonfiction Monday

 

A River of Dust: The Life-Giving Link Between North Africa and the Amazon by Jilanne Hoffmann with illustrations by Eugenia Mello

 

"I am dust, the dust of North Africa. Not just any dust though. For I connect continents."

Hoffmann tells readers a wonderous story of how the dust of the Sahel makes its vital, life-giving journey from the plains of Africa to the rainforests of South America. The Sahel is a transitional zone between the Sahara Desert on the north and the savannahs to the south. It stretches unbroken from the Atlantic coast of Mauritania to the Red Sea coast of Sudan.

 Each year, winter winds lift 182 million tons of dust high into the atmosphere to begin a 6,000-mile journey. Much of that dust, about 85%, settles into the ocean to nurture sea life. But approximately 28 tons fall to earth in the Amazon basin. This dust is rich in phosphorus, a vital nutrient for plant growth. The heavy rainfall of the Amazon washes this mineral from the soil creating a deficit of up to 90% in some places. Without the annual renewal of this essential component the ecosystem could fail.

 Hoffman conveys this important information in a beautiful poetic voice told in the dust’s point of view that reads like the epic tale it is. Then she concludes the book with a section entitled Questions for Curious Minds. Here she delves deeper into a variety of topics:

How did dust help scientists solve the mystery of the Amazon’s lush rainforest?

How does dust from the Sahel affect Atlantic Ocean ecosystems?

How does NASA measure the river of dust high in the atmosphere?

How do scientists seek to understand our complex global ecosystems?

How did South America and Africa drift apart?

An Author’s Note shares Hoffman’s own story of how she became fascinated by this subject and came to create the book.

Mello’s lovely artwork deftly weaves word and image together with motion and color.

Hoffman demonstrates how the smallest thing—a speck of dust—can make a life-changing difference. That truth reminds us of our own important place in maintaining the health of the world around us.  

RIVER OF DUST will be a valuable addition to the curriculum on a variety of STEM subjects—geography, geology, ecology, environmental science, global warming, NASA, atmospheric research, plate tectonics, and more.

Highly recommended for home and school libraries.

Picture Book Friday

 

“Once we were part of outside and Outside was part of us.” so begins Outside In by Deborah Underwood, with illustrations by Cindy Derby.

 

This lovely story offers readers a thoughtful contemplation of nature’s gifts. Outside In is an invitation to slow down and remember the many ways in which nature provides for us even when we’re too busy to notice.

 There’s a sweetly melancholy tone as the story begins in a time and place where we were a part of nature and nature was an intimate part of our daily lives shown by a child running in the woods.  Then comes an acknowledgement of how that relationship has changed. Now, even though the child is outside, she’s in a car racing through a landscape that is unacknowledged.

 But nature’s not going to be ignored—there are reminders all around us—the flash of lightning through a window. There’s the magic of a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. We hear it in the song of birds and the rattle of rain on the roof. We smell it in the sun-warmed earth and blossoming flowers. We taste it in the food born of sun and rain. Nature waits…and…if we are wise, we answer.

Underwood’s lyrical language conveys the natural world in a style perfectly suited to young readers. Simple vocabulary and short sentences that sometimes stretch across the double-page spreads make this a book that emerging readers can access.  And parents will enjoy reading this more than once to children eager to revisit this stunning work.

Derby’s illustrations create a sense of beauty, mystery, and enchantment that beguile the eye and are a wonderful complement to the text.

 I can imagine Outside In finding a home in classrooms, libraries, and homeschool collections. It’s a wonderful introduction to a nature walk, a discussion of the many ways nature intersects with our lives, or a conversation starter.

Highly recommended for home and school.

Picture Book Friday

 Mr. S by Monica Arnaldo is an entertaining first-day-of-school book sure to give you a case of the giggles.   

 

Something’s terribly wrong! Even the new kindergarteners can tell. Where’s their teacher? A search for the answer turns up two clues— “Mr. S”, written on the blackboard and…a sandwich on the desk. Could it be Mr. S? With no other answer in sight, the students organize and work their way through the day’s lessons. ABCs come first with A is for avocado toast, B is for bagel and so on. Art lessons, and story time are followed by music class complete with an imaginative chorus of Mary had a little ham.

 Arnaldo spins this tale of classroom antics with a wacky sense of the absurd, but a glance out the window reveals a second tale unfolding. Prior to the children’s arrival a man is seen writing “Mr. S” on the board just as a massive tree falls on his car in the parking lot during a violent storm. He rushes out and page turn after page turn tells another story as chaos ensues with lightning strikes, firefighters arriving…

Could this be the illusive Mr. S? The author merrily leads readers down a path of assumptions until she pulls the two narratives together with a surprise twist at the end to solve the mystery!

Arnaldo’s brilliant use of illustration to tell the two stories makes this a wonderfully visual experience that invites readers both young and old to look beneath the surface of the classroom tale. The clever narrative will make this a read aloud favorite sure to be requested time and time again.

 Recommended for anyone looking to add some laughter to their day!

Nonfiction Monday

 

Little Rosetta and the Talking Guitar by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow is a lively picture book biography of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, “the Godmother of rock and roll”.

 

Rosetta Tharpe, singer and songwriter, began playing the guitar as a child and grew so skilled that she joined her mother entertaining audiences at church and on stage as part of her mother’s musical group. Her travels across the country expanded her musical knowledge and she soon built on her gospel roots by pairing spiritual songs with the electric guitar to produce a unique sound all her own.

Although her name may be unfamiliar—Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and even Eric Clapton gave her credit for influencing their music.

Barlow imagines Rosetta’s childhood in this wonderfully entertaining book that makes clever use of onomatopoeia to capture audience attention—making for an exuberant reading experience.  Her bold illustrations pop on every page with movement and joy. An Author’s Note at the end provides additional details about the life and times of this talented performer.

Little Rosetta and the Talking Guitar highlights an extraordinary Black artist and offers an inspiring reminder for youthful readers that success takes time and persistence pays off.

Recommended for aspiring young musicians and music lovers of all ages.

 

Picture Book Friday

New Your Times Bestseller, Miss Maple's Seeds by author/illustrator Eliza Wheeler, is a complete charmer.

Miss Maple collects and protects seeds of all kinds in this delightful celebration of nature. She gathers orphaned seeds in summer and brings them to her home in a maple tree where she nurtures them through the fall and winter until they can be planted in the spring.

In the process, she teaches the seeds about the environments they will encounter. Her field trips lead from river to grassy fields, from forests to gardens. Her journey invites young readers to share her delight.

This fanciful tale has her reading flower tales by firefly light. Winter sees animal arrive to pass the snowy days with stories and songs. Spring brings rain and Miss Maple reminds the seeds, “Don’t be afraid—raindrops help us grow.” Then, the first breeze of May tells her it is time for the seeds to begin their great journey into the world to find roots of their own.

Delicate lines paired with elegant watercolors give the whimsical illustrations a life of their own both in the rich details surrounding Miss Maple and broad vistas of fields and sky.

This would be a wonderfully imaginative introduction to a study of plant life and the lifecycle of seeds for young children.

Recommended for home and school libraries.