Log Life by Amy Hevron

The story begins with a tree falling in the forest. The reader follows along with what happens next as the end of one life creates a habitat for fungi, plants, and animals. Young readers will be able to follow along with the simple descriptions of complex concepts and will learn about a wide variety of forest dwellers. Hevron’s charming illustrations add to the tranquil feeling the book gives as we watch one thousand years of life pass by over the course of 40 pages. Young nature lovers will be fascinated by all they see and inspired to go out searching for nurse logs to investigate.

Elephants Don’t Like Ants! (and Other Amazing Facts)

Kids who have even a slight interest in  elephants will enjoy this informative book. The first couple of chapters explain the differences between elephants in Africa and Asia, with photos and cartoon illustrations. The book also explains the special characteristics of elephants – did you know that their trunks have 40,016 muscles and can smell water up to 12 miles away? 

Next, the book emphasizes how special elephants are – how they can remember things for many years, how attached they are to their family groups, etc. 

At the end, readers are asked a few questions, to help them assimilate what they’ve read.