Nonfiction

Nonfiction genre

Motion, Magnets and More

Where do the bubbles come from in a piece of cake? Why do triangles make a structure stronger? And how come magnets don’t stick to the wall? This colorful and straightforward introduction to the physical sciences gives young readers an easy-to-understand overview of such concepts as materials, forces, structures, solids, liquids and gases. Explanations are accompanied by simple, fun activities, including building a structure out of dried spaghetti and inflating a balloon with a gas made by combining vinegar and baking soda. Parents and teachers will find more explanations, activity ideas and a helpful glossary in the back.

Look at that Building

Learning about buildings and how they are constructed has never been so much fun. This gem of a book introduces young readers to basic construction concepts through the eyes of five friends keen on building a doghouse for their pet pooch, Max. To find out more about the task, Yulee, Martin, Nick, Sally and Pedro head to the library, where they learn about foundations, beams, frames and other building fundamentals. Fun facts, bright illustrations and comic-book-style discussions among the characters add to the mix. An activity at the end of the book invites readers to make their own mini doghouse out of marshmallows, paper, glue and craft sticks.

My Noisy Body

My Noisy Body describes the digestive system and the meaning of the noises it creates, including burps, hiccups, stomach growls, farts, sneezes, and coughs. This book describes the body’s various systems and why they are important to overall health, along with a helpful Glossary.

R Is for Russia

From Dacha to Winter Palace, from Easter Eggs to Kremlin, here is a photographic alphabet of everything we love best about Russia. The Russian Federation is a vast land of forests and steppes, deserts, rivers, lakes and big cities. Over centuries of splendour, revolution and change, our country has produced some of the greatest scientists, sportsmen and women, writers, dancers and composers in the world. As you turn the pages of this book, you will see many of the things which make Russia so special: its fine palaces and churches, its musical and cultural traditions, its magnificent scenery and spectacular winter landscapes – and you will also see the food, the sports, as well as ordinary Russian people going about their everyday lives.

Biomimicry: Inventions Inspired by Nature

Biomimicry examines the extraordinary innovations of the natural world and the human inventions they have inspired. Readers will learn about marvels such as high-performance swimsuits modeled after sharkskin and the sleek front ends of Japanese bullet trains based on the long, streamlined beak of the kingfisher. There’s also plenty about what glimmers on the horizon: A Brazilian beetle may be key to developing computers that run on light, and the gecko’s humble foot may hold the secret to revolutionizing the way surgical wounds are closed. Best of all, nature’s inventions are lean, green machines that are self-sustaining and generate zero waste — yet another cue humans are taking from the natural world.

Friends: True Stories of Extraordinary Animal Friendships

What makes a camel friends with a Vietnamese pig?  Or a wild polar bear with a sled dog?   In a young preschool book, Catherine Thimmesh makes us wonder at the truth and mystery of unlikely animal friendships.  Because the stories behind these friendships are true, not contrived, they not only give readers insight into animals, but challenge preconceived notions about compatability.  Without becoming didactic or laden with message, this book expresses tolerance of differences and makes us look the kindness of animals — and humans — a little differently.

Andrew Zimmern’s Bizarre World of Food: Brains, Bugs, and Blood Sausage

Have you ever thought about eating giant flying ants? Or raw camel kidneys? Well, read on to watch Andrew Zimmern not only eat these unique foods, but live to tell the tale about the people, places, and adventures he’s had while roaming the world in search of new and exciting meals. Zimmern takes readers from country to country, visiting local markets, participating in cultural feasts, and chasing down native wildlife to taste what each country has to offer, and discovering what is most authentic about each place he visits and the amazing information he receives while traveling to these countries.

 

Trapped: How the World Rescued 33 Miners from 2,000 Feet Below the Chilean Desert

In early August 2010, the unthinkable happened when a mine collapsed in CopiapÓ, Chile, and 33 miners were trapped 2,000 feet below the surface. For sixty-nine days they lived on meager resources and increasingly poor air quality. When they were finally rescued, the world watched with rapt attention and rejoiced in the amazing spirit and determination of the miners. What could have been a terrible tragedy became an amazing story of survival.