13 Excellent New Nonfiction Books, October 2023

Animal Camouflage written by Martin Jenkins, illustrated by Jane McGuinness
Some animals look like leaves; others look like twigs or a flower. Some animals hide in the desert while others hide in the ocean. The simple, larger text narrates the basics of animal camouflage and smaller, more complex text gives factual information.

All About the Heart written by Dr Remi Kowalski, illustrated by Tonia Composto
Learn all about the heart, the different sizes, animals that don’t have one, its protection, and how it works. Inviting graphic designs pop off the page with blues and reds as you read the kid-friendly body information about the beating of the heart, where the blood goes, and how to take care of it. Excellent.

Follow the Flyway The Marvel of Bird Migration written by Sarah Nelson, illustrated by Maya Hanisch
Rhyming, lyrical text with gorgeous illustrations shows eggs hatching into bald and fuzzy chicks learning to quack and honk and FLY! As the weather turns to fall, the birds lift into the ancient flyway, migrating south. They soar up and on and on with the winds, an invisible ribbon pulling them. Back matter gives more information about migration, flyways, and how we can help migratory birds. It also defines the birds illustrated in the book, including mallards, common loons, Egrets, and Dunlins.

At the Poles written by David Elliott, illustrated by Ellen Ronoey
Emperor penguins, krill, and elephant seals in the Antarctic are just some of the topical poems in this book of poetry about the unique creatures who live in the far north and the far south poles.

Our Underwater World written by Sue Lowell Gallion, illustrated by Lisk Feng
The best thing about this book is the sturdy board book in a globe shape. Open up the pages, and the globe shows an ecosystem such as a lake, stream, mangrove forest, or coral reef. Small text gives factual information, but I think most readers will stick with the bigger, narrative text that describes the picture.

The Little Books of the Little Brontes written by Sara O’Leary
Gorgeous, earth-toned illustrations capture the historical feeling of this biography, written like a fictional story. It’s the charming story of a family of girls who have big hardships and big imaginations. Their lives are made better by stories — the novels they read and the stories they tell and write, including tiny books that they create. “This is the story of the little Brontes, who lived in a house on the edge of the wild moors–and also in a world of their own imagining.” The back matter shares directions for making your own little books and includes photographs of the Brontes’ actual little books.

Stone Age Beasts written by Ben Lerwill, illustrated by Grahame Baker-Smith
Kids will love this interesting oversized book about the cool creatures from the Stone Age. Each two-page spread is filled with a mesmerizing illustration and accompanied by fascinating descriptions of the creature along with a sidebar of facts, including a world map of its location. For Siberian Unicorn, the author writes, “Unicorns in fairy tales are normally dainty and elegant, but this spectacular real-life beast was a gigantic mass of fur and muscle.” Read about the Wolly Mammoth, Elephant Bird, Wonambi, Saber-Toothed Cat, Cave Lion, Dire Wolf, and more! A new favorite!!

Stomp and Chomp: My First Book of Dinosaurs written by Simon Mole, illustrated by Matt Hunt
Read aloud these cheeky, fun dinosaur poems with brightly colored, oversized illustrations. For example, the “Therizinosaurus! A Recipe” poem about cooking this dangerous creature ends with the line– “A Cretaceous specialty best served with caution.” The poem “Dinosaur Droppings” says, “Not all dinosaur dung is enormous: some dinos drop plops as small as a tiny pea.” Yes, this is unlike any other dinosaur book you’ve ever read! And your kids will love it. (And what a great way to introduce children to poetry.)

Norse Mythology: Enter a world of gods, giants, monsters, and heroes by Tom Birkett, illustrated by Isabella Mazzanti
Each of the 30 Norse featured characters has its own dynamically illustrated portrait along with a full page of descriptive information explaining the character’s background, skills and features, and a story. Whether it’s Loki in the lava-filled fortress, the Valkeries watching over every battle in the world, or Gullveig moving between homes and teaching women magic arts, you’ll meet gods and monsters in the middle of their stories.

A Natural History of Magical Beasts by Emily Hawkins, illustrated by Jessica Roux
For fans of fantasy and magical creatures like me, this book is a must-own! It’s filled with the coolest creatures of lore and legends. Each creature includes an introduction and description, plus information about its habitat, region, features, size, diet, and behavior. Even more fun is the diary entries from the intrepid explorer inviting you along. Besides loving the format and writing, I love that the book includes other cultures besides European mythical beasts!

Factology: Bugs by Button Books
Move over National Geographic Kids, Button Books is about to knock you off your pedestal. The factology book series excelled in eye-catching design and tons of facts. It might be too busy for some, but the page design is broken up by photographs, sidebars, headings, captions, and illustrations. In this book about bugs, readers get about 100 pages of information about the world of bugs, specific species, and interactions with humans.

Factology: The Human Body by Button Books
Learn about the systems of the body, DNA, the senses, medicine, and more. This is almost too much information but would be a good resource for libraries and classrooms.

Factology: Ancient Egypt by Button Books
Ancient Egyptian shopping, art, medicine, rulers, religion, pyramids, mummies, and more — this book will fascinate readers! I love the fun facts about Cleopatra’s beauty secrets (the milk from 700 donkeys for one milk bath!), directions to make a protective amulet, and all the ways the pharaohs died. I predict kids will love pouring over all of these cool facts!