Anastasia Suen

July 8, 2022July 7, 2022

Parts of a Whole

Parts of a Whole
by Magda Gargulakova (Author) and Federico Bonifacini (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: You may be surprised to learn how many individual parts make up the things around us. Do you know all the things that go into alphabet soup, a sandpit or a clock? Can you imagine how lovely all the parts look when sorted and arranged side by side? You can’t? An inquisitive cat called Ada will show you what makes up lots of ordinary and special things and places.

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

June 24, 2022June 23, 2022

I See the Sea

I See the Sea
by Julia Groves (Author / Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: What will you see in the sea? Explore the ocean in this picture book with a die-cut hole on each page. Facts about each animal and how you can help our endangered oceans can be found in the back of the book.

Snippet: I SEE a serene swimmer, alone in vast oceans.

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

June 17, 2022June 16, 2022

The Ocean

My new Focus on STEM column, The Ocean, is in the June Quick Tips for Schools and Libraries newsletter.

Snippet: Get to know about ocean zones and marine life through books and online resources for young and middle-grade learners.

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

June 10, 2022June 9, 2022

How Does Solar Energy Work?

How Does Solar Energy Work?
by Jennifer Swanson (Author) and Glen Mullaly (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: Find out what solar energy is and how it is harnessed and used. Discover the history of this technology as well as need for solar power and how it could change our world.

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

June 3, 2022June 2, 2022

How to Build a Human: In Seven Evolutionary Steps

How to Build a Human: In Seven Evolutionary Steps
by Pamela S. Turner (Author) and John Gurche (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: The epic story of human evolution in seven big steps! Find out how, when, and why did we:

1. stand up,
2. smash rocks,
3. get swelled heads,
4. take a hike,
5. invent barbecue,
6. start talking (and never shut up), and
7. become storytellers?

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A NOTE ON RACE
The modern concept of race is relatively recent. It is tied to efforts by early European scientists and naturalists to arrange life on a religiously inspired ladder with a Christian God at the top, followed by angels, then white people, with other races just a step above monkeys and apes. These racial concepts were closely tied to a wave of European colonialism that began in the sixteenth century.

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

May 20, 2022May 19, 2022

I LOVE Strawberries!

I LOVE Strawberries!
by Shannon Anderson (Author) and Jaclyn Sinquett (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: With scrapbook-style journal entries, young readers learn how Jolie convinces the “old people” (aka her parents) to let her grow her own strawberries from seedling to table. Growing strawberries is a lot of work and responsibility, but Jolie is ready with the help of her faithful rabbit Munchy! Together they find out just how delicious, rewarding, and sometimes complicated it can be to grow your own food.

Creating a garden calendar and notebook, how strawberries grow, what pests to look out for in a garden, why ladybugs are helpful, and how a good gardener takes care of strawberry plants are all explained in Jolie’s journal entries. Informational backmatter includes tips on growing strawberries, an explanation of integrated pest management for greener, safer gardening – and even tips for how to find a pick your own strawberry patch near you.

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BONUS! Download the coloring pages and Educator’s Guide

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

May 13, 2022May 12, 2022

The Cottonwood Tree

The Cottonwood Tree
by Serena Mangus (Author) and Anait Semirdzhyan (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: Cottonwood trees grow throughout North America and play a critical role in their ecosystems. In this “autobiography,” a cottonwood tree tells its life story beginning when it is only a seed in a bed of fluff, floating over a river somewhere in the American heartland, and ending more than 80 years later when it is toppled by a fierce storm. Along the way the seed grows into a majestic tree, spreading its life-giving branches to birds, insects, and animals.

The tree also recounts its visits over the years by a special human who was born in the same year. As a boy, this human climbs the cottonwood’s branches to watch the river and dream. As a father, he brings his daughter to visit. As an old man he grieves to see the tree knocked down but rejoices when he sees new sprouts emerging from the stump. He knows the tree is not done yet!

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

May 6, 2022May 5, 2022

Bracelets for Bina’s Brothers

Bracelets for Bina’s Brothers (Storytelling Math)
by Rajani LaRocca (Author) and Chaaya Prabhat (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: For the Hindu holiday of Raksha Bandhan, Bina is determined to make beaded bracelets for her brothers all by herself. She finds out which colors her brothers like and dislike and sets to work. Working with her every-other-one beading pattern causes Bina to discover something new about patterns–and her brothers.

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¡Ahora en edición bilingüe inglés-español! @ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

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

May 2, 2022May 26, 2022

Time to Shine

Time to Shine: Celebrating the World’s Iridescent Animals
by Karen Jameson (Author) and Dave Murray (Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: Have you ever noticed the rainbow-like shimmer on certain bird feathers, insect bodies and animal scales? This effect, called iridescence, changes depending on the angle from which its viewed, and animals across the globe use the effect to both blend in and stand out. Take a closer look at these creatures and their sparkly “clothes” with rhyming couplets and prose text with further context for each animal’s particular environment and adaptation.

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Linda is hosting Poetry Friday at A Word Edgewise

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

April 29, 2022May 5, 2022

Eggs from Red Hen Farm: Farm to Table with Mazes and Maps

Eggs from Red Hen Farm: Farm to Table with Mazes and Maps
by Monica Wellington (Author / Illustrator)
@ Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Booktalk: Maps and mazes show children where their food comes from as Ruby and Ned gather eggs from their hens and ride their red truck to deliver the eggs–to the farmer’s market, the restaurant, the school, the grocery story, and the bakery. The baker uses the eggs in her yummiest cookies–and gives them to Ruby and Ned!

Snippet: “I’m good at counting money,” says Ned.
“You take care of business here,” says Ruby. “I’ll make the deliveries.”

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