Earth Day and Beyond

With Earth Day, Green Up Day and Spring around the corner (though I am not as sure about Spring due to the current weather conditions) the young readers fancy turns towards books about the earth. And both titles, Water’s Children: Celebrating the Resource That Unites Us All by Angele Delaunois and When Planet Earth Was New by James Gladstone, give a story and facts about the past and present earth, the people there, water as well as many other details.

Water’s Children shows us how water comes in all sorts of forms: snowflakes, an oasis, a faucet, or even the monsoon rain. Each page gives you an image of how each child finds water, how special it is as well as a little surprise on each page. The reader learns how “Water is life” from these narrators. On the final page, a guide identifies the languages that the phrase “water is life” appears on that page (along with their translator). Aimed at the educator, this could be a bedtime read as well.

When Planet Earth Was New takes a less “now” approach and shows how the Earth came to be as we know it. Billions of years are covered in a few pages. From lava to oceans and lands evolution, biology, geology and other areas are combined to create a fact-filled treat.  Back matter includes informational notes about each spread, as well as sources, an author’s note, and a glossary. Mostly aimed at the educator, a child could enjoy solo as well.