Materials from the Americas
A young girl’s love of the coquíes’ nightly song helps her survive a destructive hurricane with her family. Includes author’s note.
Thirteen-year-old nonbinary tiger spirit Sebin must decide where their loyalties lie when their traitorous uncle hijacks the battle cruiser that happens to be Sebin’s first assignment in the Cadet Program.
The Pandavas call on old friends, make new allies, and face fearsome trials as they embark on a mission to stop the Sleeper from accessing the nectar of immortality, but ultimately Aru must decide who deserves immortality–the devas or the asuras–and an unexpected answer comes from an unexpected place.
Through the window, the child can hear the trees breathe and watches them sway back and forth as they begin to dance. Then bears join in, accompanied by the child on their drum, making so much noise they wake up a dragon! The dragon’s smoky breath fills the sky, and the wind forms a knight on a steed that gallops through the stars. The child’s adventure continues, as one wonderful flight of fancy leads to the next, from pirates to mermaids to whales, until they find themselves sitting silent once again among the trees.
As a budding scientist, Marco tries different ways of sorting his collection of stuffed animal toys before bedtime, but the animals have their own ideas.
Everyone is worried about the pandemic, but Malian knows how to keep her family and community safe: She protects her grandparents, and they protect her. She doesn’t go outside to play with friends, she helps her grandparents use video chat, and she listens to and learns from their stories. And when Malsum, one of the dogs living on the rez, shows up at their door, Malian’s family knows that he’ll protect them too.
Things are changing for one little girl whose mom is a busy doctor. When her mom has to be in quarantine―sleeping on a cot in their garage to keep the family safe from the virus―the girl does her best to be brave. She and her dad spend time together, she goes to school online, and she helps her grandparents too…making sure to wave so they know it’s her! They join their neighbours outside to thank the doctors and nurses around the world for their hard work. But of course the highlight of the day is when mom comes home, and they wave to each other through the window.
A captivating look at the life of a modern-day fossil hunter who makes the find of a lifetime told by award-winning author Helaine Becker. Wendy has an eye for the unusual and is skilled at finding things that others don’t see. While on a school field trip at age 12, she spots one of those unusual things poking out of the ground, and it turns out to be a piece of fossilized coral that’s 100 million years old. Wendy’s thrilled! And soon, she gets hooked on finding fossils. When she grows up, Wendy turns her passion into her career and becomes a preeminent fossil hunter, known as the “fossil whisperer” around the world. But it’s on a dig close to home where Wendy makes her most important discovery: Wendiceratops!
A gorgeous picture book inspired by a traditional Central American Indigenous story about a snake with the power to bring the rain, told in lyrical language and evocative art, and subtly conveying an environmental theme.
Itzel listens as her nana tells the story of when the giant snake would be awakened from its sleep: “And first with a whisper that would rustle the leaves, and then with a deep thunderous cry, the giant snake would bring the arrival of the rainy season.” But now, since many no longer believe in the snake, her nana says, “It has returned to the place where the water is born.” Now, Itzel and her nana are desperate for rain to water their bone-dry crops. So Itzel decides she must find and awaken the snake herself. She sets out in the night alone, but soon she is joined by an ocelot, and a bevy of other jungle creatures in need of the rain. And Itzel worries, is she leading them on a fruitless journey?
In each new adventure, Putuguq and Kublu learn about an element of Inuit mythology from their Elders, sometimes using what they learn to get the best of each other!
Putuguq and Kublu are at their grandparents’ house for lunch―caribou stew, Putuguq’s favourite! Putuguq’s worn out (and stinky!) kamiik remind his grandparents of the story of the amautalik and the orphan, a traditional story about a little orphan who outsmarts a child-stealing ogress. Grandmother’s storytelling over lunch starts Putuguq’s imagination running wild….
After lunch, Putuguq and Kublu decide to act out the story their grandmother has just told. But, for Putuguq, this is no ordinary play. He is determined to prove his fearlessness to an unsuspecting Kublu… with a little help from his stinky socks!