Puffling Patrol

Ted and Betsy Lewin detail the annual rescue of baby puffins by the children of Heimaey, the largest island in the Westman Islands off the coast of Iceland. Includes additional information about puffins and the Westman Islands, glossary, and further reading.

Authors Ted and Betsy Lewin discuss Puffling Patrol.

Blizzard of Glass: The Halifax Explosion of 1917

On December 6, 1917 two ships collided in Halifax Harbour. One ship was loaded top to bottom with munitions and one held relief supplies, both intended for wartorn Europe. The resulting blast flattened two towns, Halifax and Dartmouth, and killed nearly 2,000 people. As if that wasn’t devastating enough, a blizzard hit the next day, dumping more than a foot of snow on the area and paralyzing much-needed relief efforts. Fascinating, edge-of-your-seat storytelling based on original source material conveys this harrowing account of tragedy and recovery.

Who’s Like Me?

A bunny is furry and breathes air. Who else is like that – a pigeon, a fish, a chameleon, or a fox? Some animals have fins to swim with, some have feathers and a beak, some have skin that is scaly, or smooth and wet. But whatever features a creature has, someone else has them, too. Can you guess who? Big flaps and a matching spread at the end make animal classification fun.

If You Lived Here: Houses of the World

Step into unique homes from around the world and discover the many fascinating ways in which people live and have lived. If you lived in the mountains of southern Spain, your bedroom might be carved out of a mountain. If you lived in a village in South Africa, the outside of your house might tell the story of your family. And if you lived in a floating green house in the Netherlands, you could rotate your house to watch both the sunrise and sunset. With intricate bas-relief collages, Giles Laroche uncovers the reason why each home was constructed the way in which it was, then lets us imagine what it would be like to live in homes so different from our own. Showing the tremendous variety of dwellings worldwide—log cabins, houses on stilts, cave dwellings, boathouses, and yurts—this book addresses why each house is build the way that it is. Reasons—such as blending into the landscape, confusing invaders, being able to travel with one’s home, using whatever materials are at hand—are as varied as the homes themselves. List of Houses included: Dogtrot log house, based on dogtrots built in the southern U.S. Chalet, based on chalets built in the Austrian Alps. Pueblo, Taos, New Mexico Connected barn, based on connected barns common in northern New England. Cave dwelling, Guadix, Andalucia, Spain Palafitos (house on stilts), Chiloe Island, Chile Palazzo Dario, Venice, Italy Chateau La Brede, Bordeaux, FranceTulou, Hangkeng village, Yongding, China Half-timbered houses, Miltenberg am Main, Germany Greek island village houses, Astipalaia Island, Greece Decorated houses of Ndebele, Pretoria, Transvaal, South Africa Yurt, based on yurts in Mongolia and other parts of central Asia. Airstream trailer, USA Floating house, Middleburg, the Netherlands Tree house, USA.

Who Will Save My Planet?

This unique and powerful wordless book uses striking photos to show the impact of humans on the environment. Each provocative image speaks volumes. On every spread we are shown a treasure that nature has given us beside a picture of how we’ve abused that treasure. We see a beautiful forest glade beside a devastated patch of burned-out wood, a gorgeous green parrot beside a dull-feathered caged bird, a sparkling waterfall beside a garbage-clogged river. It would take thousands of words to express the important environmental message presented by Cristina Urrutia.

Going Ape!

There are more than 200 species of primates in the world. Going Ape! is a wonderful introduction to some of the most fascinating ones for children just discovering the world of animals. From Japan’s macaques to Africa’s gorillas, brilliant images and brief, informative text will capture the imagination of young children.

 

What We Wear

Vibrant photographs from around the world showcase the many different types of clothing that kids wear to play, study, pretend and celebrate. From school uniforms to costumes, traditional ethnic clothing to sports team jerseys-no matter what kids wear, clothes are an important part of who they are.

Earth-Friendly Buildings, Bridges and More

This dynamic title takes the form of Corry’s scrapbook. It’s a dazzling collection of postcards, brochures and other memorabilia documenting Corry’s research into green design. Kid-friendly language explains the engineering behind some of the planet’s most cutting edge towers, bridges, tunnels, domes, dams, dikes, locks and levees. These structures include the Vizcaya Bridge in Spain, where gondolas transport cars over the Nervion River, and the Channel tunnel, where trains speed between England and France in just 35 minutes.