Rounding up the best nonfiction for children and teens
The US Army in Action
by Percy Leed (Author)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
Booktalk: Discover the history of the US Army and explore the different jobs soldiers do, the technology and equipment they use, and more.
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It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
We the People! (Big Ideas that Changed the World #4)
by Don Brown (Author/ Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
Booktalk: Explaining the fundamentals of democracy–liberty, equality, and justice for all–in a kid-friendly way, narrator Abigail Adams (wife of Founding Father John Adams) explores the history of democracy–from civilization’s beginnings as hunter-gatherers to the birth of monarchies and vast empires, and from the earliest republics to our present-day government.
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It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
Drawing the Vote: A Graphic Novel History for Future Voters
by Tommy Jenkins (Author) and Kati Lacker (Illustrator),
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
Booktalk: Originally published in the lead-up to the 2020 US presidential election, this expanded paperback edition of the history of voting rights in the United States features an additional 32 pages of comics that cover the results of the 2020 presidential election and the factors that shaped it, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the January 6 insurrection.
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It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
Vampires
by Marysa Storm (Author)
Booktalk: Beginning readers investigate spooky stories about vampires using critical thinking.
Snippet: Today most people agree vampires aren’t real. But long ago, people believed. They didn’t understand disease. The stories explained some sicknesses.
It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
Werewolves (Legendary Creatures)
by Emma Huddleston (Author)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
Booktalk: Legends from around the world tell stories of a creature whose piercing howl under the full moon strikes fear into the hearts of those who hear it. From Greek mythology to Harry Potter, werewolves have captured people’s imaginations for millennia. Learn about the histories and behaviors of these legendary creatures and their presence in popular culture.
Snippet: In a legend from Germany, a man puts on and takes off a belt to turn from man to wolf. He has control of the change. He is not cursed or punished like people in other legends.
It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
Human Kindness: True Stories of Compassion and Generosity that Changed the World
by John Francis (Author) and Josy Bloggs (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
Booktalk: Over the whole history of humankind, kindness has been key to the survival of our species, and to making our world a better place. Learn about Harriet Tubman, who risked her life to help others escape from slavery, the Nomads Clinic, which sends doctors trekking into the Himalayas to tend to patients, The Linda Lindas, a group of young musicians who use their talent to speak up for the rights of others, Joshua Coombes, a hairdresser who gives free haircuts to the homeless, and many others.
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It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
Humans and Animals: What We Have in Common
by Pavla Hanackova (Author) and Dasha Lebesheva (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
Booktalk: Humans have much more in common with animals than it might seem at first glance. See fifteen different things we have in common!
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It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
Splash! Ethelda Bleibtrey Makes Waves of Change
by Elisa Boxer (Author) and Elizabeth Baddeley (Illustrator)
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Booktalk: Ethelda Bleibtrey was a girl with guts who loved the water. As a child with polio in the early 1900s, swimming set her free. The water released her from her pain and helped her build strong muscle–and a powerful spirit. From then on, from the New York beaches to the choppy waters of the 1920 Olympics to the Central Park Reservoir, Ethelda made a splash wherever she went. For Ethelda, doing the right thing sometimes came with a price–change often does–but Ethelda helped make the world better than how she found it. Splash!
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It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
Hero for the Hungry: The Life and Work of Norman Borlaug
by Peggy Thomas (Author) and Sam Kalda (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
Booktalk: Can a quiet Iowa farm boy grow up to change the world? Norman Ernest Borlaug did.
Born in 1914, raised on a small farm, and educated in a one-room schoolhouse, Norman Borlaug learned to work hard and excelled in sports, and later studied forestry in college, eventually becoming a plant scientist.
Even from a young age, Norman Borlaug dedicated his life’s work to ending world hunger. Working in obscurity in the wheat fields of Mexico in the 50s and 60s, Norm and his team developed disease-resistant plants, and when widespread famine threatened India and Pakistan, Norm worked alongside poor farmers, battled bureaucracy, and fearlessly stood up to heads of state to save millions of lives from mass starvation.
Often called the “Father of the Green Revolution,” Norm helped lay the groundwork for agricultural technological advances that alleviated world hunger, and he went on to win the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1970. He was a true hero for the hungry.
Snippet: The car stops. Norm’s wife steps out. Alarm bells go off in Norm’s head. Margaret looks flustered, which isn’t like her at all.
Norm hurries down the row to the end of the ditch. “What’s wrong?” he calls out. Has one of the children been in an accident? Is his mother or father sick? It has to be something urgent for Margaret to drive all the way out here from Mexico City.
Margaret shakes her head and hollers, “Norman, you’ve won the Nobel Peace Prize.”
Now it’s Norm’s turn to shake his head. “No. No,” he says calmly. “That can’t be, Margaret. Someone’s pulling your leg.”
It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.
Making Friends at School
by Margo Gates (Author)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
Booktalk: Making friends is one of the most daunting parts of school for young students. This beginning reader has strategies for meeting new people and kid-friendly reflection questions.
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It’s Nonfiction Monday!
Copyright © 2022 Anastasia Suen All Rights Reserved.