July 2021 – STEM Friday

July 30, 2021July 29, 2021

Pangolina

Pangolina
by Jane Goodall (Author) and Daishu Ma (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: After a blissful babyhood being cared for by her loving mother, Pangolina ventures out alone into the forest to become an independent adult, helped along by wise, older animal companions, including a civet and a bat. But one day cruel hunters trap Pangolina, putting her into a cage along with her friends, and bring them to a market to be sold as wild game. Pangolina is especially vulnerable, since her scales are prized by humans who believe they have curative powers. To the rescue comes a small girl who knows that pangolins are friendly fellow creatures who have feelings too, and who convinces her mother to buy Pangolina and set her free.

Snippet: Once I was startled when a large creature — a bit like a fox with wings — flew low over us. My mother told me not to worry because it was only a fruit bat.

Almost every night, Bat flew past us with his pals, and we became good friends.

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

July 23, 2021July 22, 2021

Unconventional Vehicles: Forty-Five of the Strangest Cars, Trains, Planes, Submersibles, Dirigibles, and Rockets EVER

Unconventional Vehicles: Forty-Five of the Strangest Cars, Trains, Planes, Submersibles, Dirigibles, and Rockets EVER
by Michael Hearst (Author) and Hans Jenssen (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: Explore very strange modes of transportation (and listen to the song for each one) in this middle grade book for vehicle fans, rocket inventors, budding space-and-aeronautics experts, and anyone who’s ever thought, “Why can’t I ride a motorized suitcase through the airport?” (You CAN. See page 67!)

Snippet:

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

July 16, 2021July 15, 2021

Bird Show

Bird Show
by Susan Stockdale (Author, Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: Eighteen portraits reveal a fashionable show of spectacular birds displaying their stunning plumage and flamboyant styles.

Snippet:
My suit has white speckles,
my headdress has spots.

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

July 9, 2021July 8, 2021

Beneath the Waves: Celebrating the Ocean Through Pictures, Poems, and Stories

Beneath the Waves: Celebrating the Ocean Through Pictures, Poems, and Stories
by Stephanie Warren Drimmer (Author)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: Starting with the seashore and journeying through the ocean’s zones, readers will discover mangrove forests, coral reefs, and the deepest ocean depths. On this journey they will discover some of the extraordinary animals that live on shore and under the sea. Along the way, readers will enjoy poems, stories, fun facts, photo galleries, and more. Highlights include a foreword from explorer and renowned photojournalist Brian Skerry; an interview with National Geographic Explorer and marine conservationist Jess Cramp; a poem by former children’s poet laureate J. Patrick Lewis; the work of Explorer-in-Residence and ocean ecologist Enric Sala; and an afterword by renowned ocean conservationist Sylvia Earle.

Snippet: One of the world’s oldest shell collections was unearthed in the ruins of the ancient city of Pompei.

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

July 2, 2021July 1, 2021

Dr. Fauci: How a Boy from Brooklyn Became America’s Doctor

Dr. Fauci: How a Boy from Brooklyn Became America’s Doctor
by Kate Messner (Author) and Alexandra Bye (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: Before he was Dr. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Anthony Fauci was a curious boy in Brooklyn, delivering prescriptions from his father’s pharmacy on his blue Schwinn bicycle. His father and immigrant grandfather taught Anthony to ask questions, consider all the data, and never give up–and Anthony’s ability to stay curious and to communicate with people would serve him his entire life.

Snippet:

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)