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Animals

This Zoo is Not For You

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This Zoo Is Not For You by Ross Collins
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Kids

Did you know you need an interview to be seen at the zoo? When one platypus answers the call for hire, they may find that the zoo is not as welcoming as it seems. After multiple rejections from the current zoo residents for not meeting their very particular requirements, perhaps the most a platypus can do is continue being themselves and make sure that the place that they belong is welcoming to everyone.

This adorably illustrated story in rhyme is a wonderful message for being inclusive and welcoming when meeting new people. Sometimes we can be quick to judge whether or not someone is “enough” for our established circles. Sometimes we wonder whether we can fit in or contribute something special to a new group. Sometimes it takes one brave and unique person to break down barriers and create a place where the uninvited are always invited! Whether you’ve been the platypus or a current member of a zoo looking for someone new, this picture book will remind you that even if the zoo is not for you, there’s always room for you on the platybus!

Find This Zoo is Not For You in the catalog here!

Crossings: Extraordinary Structures for Extraordinary Animals

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Crossings: Extraordinary Structures for Extraordinary Animals
by Katy S. Duffield and illustrated by Mike Orodan
Format: Book

Animal lovers around the world are building wildlife crossings. Over, under, around and through construction by humans. We humans build ways for us to get through with roads and overpasses, tunnels and more. But what happens when our construction encroaches on animal habitat? All around the world people that love animals are finding ways of building crossings that help animals get safely back around, under, over and through the roads that we humans have built.

Woven rope bridges for Squirrel Gliders in Australia. A tiny tunnel under the pavement in New Zealand for Blue Penguins. Blue tight rope bridges above roads for Titi Monkeys in Costa Rica are just a few of the wildlife crossings that have been constructed, just for the protection, of animals around the world.

You will be intrigued by the beautiful illustrations in this non-fiction book!

Find it in the catalog!

Surprise by Mies Van Hout

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Surprise

By Mies Van Hout

Format: Book

Who’s it for: Kids

Another international children’s treasure, Surprise was originally published in New Zealand in Dutch by Mies Van Hout. The complex and emotional world of planning, parenting and raising children are depicted by colorful bird representations. Surprise (following Happy and Friends) provides another wonderous chalklike, kaleidoscope printed canvas by Van Hout. Children and adults alike will enjoy following the journey of yearning to letting go.

Find Surprise in the catalog here.

Norman, Speak! By Caroline Adderson

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Norman, Speak!

By Caroline Adderson & Qin Leng

Format: Book

Who’s it for: Kids

 

This heartwarming international children’s picture book has a surprising twist. A boy and his family visit an animal shelter and select the dog that has been in the shelter the longest, a special dog named Norman. Norman is friendly and funny but, does not respond to the usual dog commands. His new family loves him anyway! On an outing in the park Norman’s family learns something about him that changes everything! It turns out that Norman is super smart and has many things to teach and share with his new family.

 

Awards: 2015 United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) and 2015 Outstanding International Book (OIB).

Find it in the catalog here.

Packs: Strength in Numbers

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Packs: Strength in Numbers by Hannah Salyer
Format: Book
Who Its For: Kids

Take a look at nature and you will find groups-herds, flocks, swarms of creatures big and small. In Packs: Strength in Numbers, Hannah Salyer celebrates this unity and diversity found in the animal world. With her illustrations of dusty bison on the march, or wolves streaking through snow-quiet forest, she gives us a close up view of just how animals, birds and insects work together to survive and thrive, in hunting, traveling, growing food, singing, protecting the young. This book contains loads of information about the habits of these creatures which will satisfy the curiosity of little naturalists, and big ones too (for example, did you know that a herd of wildebeests can have up to a million animals, and is called an implausibility? Me either!) The book ends with a gentle reminder that working together is always better for creatures and humans alike.

Find it in the catalog

 

Being Frog

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Book Cover of "Being Frog" by April Pulley SayreBeing Frog by April Pulley Sayre
Publication/Release Date:
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Kids

Frogs are fascinating, and Being Frog by April Pulley Sayre is a beautiful look at these amphibians for young naturalists. Stunning photos and simple rhyming text show a tiny frog egg growing into a tadpole, then a tiny froglet able to leave the water. Readers then follow one day in the life of a green frog in a North American woodland pond: we see the frog swimming, climbing, hunting, missing its prey, and trying again. The author Sayre uses simple language to show that frogs are living creatures with their own needs, habitats, and behaviors- not playthings, but wild animals. An author’s note gives more information about how she observed and photographed the frogs over many months to create this lovely book, which is perfect for the youngest nature-lovers.

Find it in the catalog