It’s a Birthday Party!

Today we release three new picture books to the world! Happy Book Birthday to authors Mary Holland Jennifer Keats Curtis and Timothy Bradley and illustrator Phyllis Saroff!

Now, let’s meet the books

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Mary Holland has written several popular Arbordale titles, including her Animal Anatomy and Adaptations series. For Animal Tracks and Traces, she spent days capturing signs that animals were around. She also gives readers a glimpse at the animals that made the tracks, scat or marks.

About the book: Animals are all around us. While we may not often see them, we can see signs that they’ve been there. Some signs might be simple footprints in snow or mud (tracks) and other signs include chewed or scratched bark, homes or even poop and pee (traces). Children will become animal detectives after learning how to “read” the animal signs left all around. Smart detectives can even figure out what the animals were doing! This is a perfect sequel to Mary Holland’s Animal Anatomy and Adaptations series.

Visit the Animal Tracks and Traces page to learn more!

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Jennifer Keats Curtis is also finding herself writing about familiar themes in Creek Critters. Fans of her books Baby Bear’s Adoption, Moonlight Crab Count, or Salamander Season will love this book too! For this book, she teamed up with the Stroud Water Research Center to show young readers how they can tell if their creek is healthy by finding some bugs.

About the Book: Do you like scavenger hunts? How do you tell if creek water is clean and healthy? Join Lucas and his sister as they act like scientists looking for certain kinds of stream bugs (aquatic macroinvertebrates) that need clean, unpolluted water to survive. What will they find as they turn over rocks, pick up leaves and sort through the mud? Read along to find out if their creek gets a passing grade.

Go to the Creek Critters page and learn more about bugs in the book!

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Timothy Bradley has always loved writing about creatures of the past! I am Allosaurus starts a prehistoric series, and he kicks off the series with a favorite dino, the Allosaurus. This book will certainly be loved by beginning readers as they run, eat, and hide with the bright pink Allosaurus. While the text is simple, Bradley’s illustrations are bright, fun, and reflect new research in paleontology.

About the Book: What would it be like to live as a dinosaur? Young readers will discover that dinosaur lives had many similarities to present-day animals: they hatched, ran, hunted, hid from predators, and grew to adulthood. However, the world these creatures from the far past inhabited was very different from that of today; a great example is that a simple thing like grass didn’t yet exist. Repetitive sight words make this a great story for beginning readers and dinosaur enthusiasts alike.

Run to the I am Allosaurus book page to learn more about Timothy and his new series!

All these titles are available in hardcover, paperback, and Spanish paperback. Visit Arbordale’s website for more information!

Happy Belated Book Birthday

We’re a little late with our celebration this season, but as they say better late than never! Our new books hit shelves on March 12th. We are so excited that little readers are getting the opportunity to learn new facts or be entertained by a couple silly kitties. Congratulations to the authors and illustrators and welcome to the world…

Animal Noses

Noses come in all kinds of shapes and sizes that are just right for its particular animal host. Not only do most animals use their noses to breathe but for many animals, the sense of smell helps them find food, a mate, or even to know when danger is near! Following Animal Tails, Animal Eyes, Animal Mouths (NSTA/CBC Outstanding Trade Science Award), and Animal Legs, Mary Holland continues her photographic Animal Anatomy and Adaptations series by exploring many different animal noses and how those noses help the animals survive in their habitats.

Mary Holland is a naturalist, nature photographer, columnist, and award-winning author with a life-long passion for natural history. After graduating from the University of Michigan’s School of Natural Resources, Mary worked as a naturalist at the Museum of the Hudson Highlands in New York state, directed the state-wide Environmental Learning for the Future program for the Vermont Institute of Natural Science, worked as a resource naturalist for the Massachusetts Audubon Society, and designed and presented her own “Knee-High Nature Programs” for libraries and elementary schools throughout Vermont and New Hampshire.

Her other children’s books with Arbordale include Otis the Owl, Ferdinand Fox’s First Summer (NSTA / CBC Most Outstanding Science Trade Book and Moonbeam Children’s Book Award), The Beavers’ Busy Year, Yodel the Yearling, Animal Ears, Animal Tails, Animal Noses, Animal Eyes, Animal Legs, and Animal Mouths (NSTA / CBC Most Outstanding Science Trade Book). Mary’s book Naturally Curious: a Photographic Field Guide and Month-by-Month Journey Through the Fields, Woods and Marshes of New England won the 2011 National Outdoor Book Award for the Nature Guidebook category. Naturally Curious Day by Day was published in 2016. Mary lives in Vermont with her lab, Greta. Visit Mary’s blog at naturallycuriouswithmaryholland.wordpress.com.

If a Mummy Could Talk…

If a mummy could talk, what would it say? Of course, mummies can’t talk. But with modern scientific tools, we can still discover what a mummy has to tell us. Read the stories of mummified Egyptian pharaohs and priestesses, baby elephants, pampered pets, and even a prehistoric bison. Uncover clues to centuries-old murder mysteries and human sacrifices, and even find out what a person or animal had for their last meal! Information from real scientists explains how we know what we know about each mummy. So, what do these mummies have to say? Lots, it turns out!

Rhonda Lucas Donald has written more than a dozen books for children and teachers. She has written If a Mummy Could Talk…, Deep in the Desert (Silver Moonbeam Children’s Book Award), Dino Tracks, and Dino Treasures for Arbordale. In addition, she has won awards for articles and stories appearing in Ranger Rick and Big Backyard magazines. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, National Science Teachers Association, and the Cat Writers Association. Rhonda and her husband share their Virginia home with their dog, Dixie, and their cats, Huxley and Darcy. Visit her website at www.browntabby.com. 

Cathy Morrison may have started her art career in animation, but she soon fell in love with illustrating children’s books and has been doing so for 20 years. She’s illustrated If a Mummy Could Talk…, Dino Tracks, Dino Treasures, Nature Recycles— How About You?, Daisylocks, This Land is Your Land, Tortoise and Hare’s Amazing Race, Three Little Beavers, and Animalogy: Animal Analogies for Arbordale. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Cathy works from home in a studio loft overlooking a beautiful view of the Mummy Range, on the northern side of Rocky Mountain National Park. Check out her blog at www.cathymorrison.blogspot.com.

The Long and Short Tail of Colo and Ruff

Colo the cougar and her friend Ruff, the bobcat, jump and play together, but Ruff can’t jump as far as Colo. Ruff doesn’t have a long, swishy tail like Colo does, to provide balance on long leaps. Ruff’s tail is much shorter. He is sure that something is wrong with him. Sympathetic, Colo suggests they find a tail that Ruff would like better, so off they go. As the two kittens explore the variety of tails worn by other animals, they make the best discovery of all.

Diane Lang volunteers at two different nature centers where she gives programs and classes to share nature with young children-and that love of sharing nature led her to her writing picture books. In addition to authoring The Long and Short Tail of Colo and Ruff for Arbordale, Diane’s other books include Daytime, Nighttime, All Through the Year; Vulture Verses, Love Poems for the Unloved and Fur, Feather, Fin: All of Us Are Kin. Diane lives in California with her husband and several beloved pets-a gentle snake, two dogs, two tortoises, and two sweet tarantulas. Visit her website at www.dianelang.net.

Award-winning illustrator Laurie Allen Klein has been a freelance artist for nearly 25 years. Over the last several years, she has worked as the on-staff artist for a marine park, where she does everything from painting life-size sea animal murals to illustrating children’s activity books. Laurie has also illustrated Dear Komodo Dragon, Saving Kate’s Flowers, Balloon Trees, Fur and Feathers, The Ghost of Donley Farm, If a Dolphin Were a Fish, Little Skink’s Tail, Meet the Planets, Solar System Forecast, They Just Know and Where Should Turtle Be? for Arbordale. Laurie lives in Florida. See more of her artwork at www.lauriekleinarts.com.

River Rescue

When oil spills, workers hurry to clean the land and water. But oil spills can also affect every animal that lives in the area. Who helps these wild animals? On the East Coast, a team from Tri-State Bird Rescue & Research rushes to the scene to save as many as possible. Follow along to learn how these experts capture oiled animals and treat them quickly and safely so that they may be returned to the wild. This illustrated nonfiction is based on the extensive experience of the Oiled Wildlife Response Team at Tri-State.

Award-winning author Jennifer Keats Curtis has penned numerous stories about animals, including Kali’s Story: An Orphaned Polar Bear Rescue(Children’s Choice Book Award Winner); After A While Crocodile: Alexa’s Diary (NSTA/CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children) with co-author Dr. Brady Barr of Nat Geo Wild’s Dangerous Encounter; Baby Bear’s Adoption with wildlife biologists at Michigan’s DNR; and Moonlight Crab Count with co-author Dr. Neeti Bathala. The long-time writer’s other recent books include The Lizard Lady, with co-author Dr. Nicole Angeli, Maggie: Alaska’s Last Elephant and the Animal Helpers Series. When not writing, Jennifer can be found among students and teachers, talking about literacy and conservation. Visit her website at www.jenniferkeatscurtis.com.

Tammy Yee grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii, where she explored tide pools, swam in streams and wrote and illustrated spooky stories. After college, she worked as a pediatric registered nurse. Having children rekindled her love for picture books; so, in 1994 she exchanged her stethoscope for a paintbrush and has been illustrating picture books ever since. Tammy has worked on more than thirty books including River Rescue and A True Princess of Hawai‘i for Arbordale, The Tsunami Quilt: Grandfather’s Story, Lullaby Moon, and Baby Honu’s Incredible Journey. Tammy lives in Oahu with her family, two rabbits, a chinchilla, a cockatiel, a cat and a burping bulldog named Roxy. In her spare time, she raises monarch butterflies and creates origami projects. Visit her website at http://www.tammyyee.com.

Learn more about each of these titles on www.arbordalepublishing.com!

It’s a Birthday Party!

Happy Book Birthday to Jennifer Keats Curtis, Veronica Jones, Linda Stanek, Shennen Bersani, Kevin Kurtz, Sherry Neidigh, Brian Rock, and Carolyn Le their books are on sale at your favorite bookseller!

Get to know our new titles!

 

When two young kids learn about their father’s job, they get a surprise experience not many of us could imagine. Braden and Finley quickly learn to snowshoe so that they can head out with their Dad and his team of wildlife biologists. Dad and his team are part of a program in Michigan that tag, track and eventually hope to unite orphaned baby bears with new mama bears. The kids keep the cubs warm as the team does their work and then places the cubs back with mom in the den for their long winter hibernation. The kids wait until spring when Dad gets a call that they have an orphaned baby bear that needs a new family and the kids once again tag along to watch the team strategically join the baby with a new mom.

 

Many know that cheetahs are fast, but many don’t know how challenging it is to be a big cat on the African savanna. A poetic text introduces the many trials and tribulations of hunting, raising young cheetahs, and other dangers. This book urges readers to feel empathy toward the cats while learning more about their life. The lyrical text is paired with more informative tidbits about habitat and adaptations. The realistic artwork gives readers an up-close look at these majestic cats.

 

Spend a day and a night with the animals that call a forested wetland home. Some of these neighbors bask in the sunlight through the trees; others prefer to lurk in the waters. But when the sun goes down, a whole new group of animals thrives under the cover of darkness. Throughout the book, we learn fascinating facts about these animals and the unique habitat they call home in short rhyming stanzas. The text paired with the amazing detail in the illustrations, readers are sure to ask to visit a wetland after reading this book!

 

King Lion draws a line in the sand of his dusty empire, and the racers wait for the start. The race is quick, and the cheetah is crowned the winner of the world’s fastest animal! But wait, the other animals cry that the race is unfair and make their case for a new competition. Birds are much quicker through the air, and over a long distance the husky would surely beat the cheetah, and the marlin is the speediest in the sea. Others show off their own special skills until King Lion had heard enough and then ponders the problem. The solution is simple King Lion will hold an Olympics with categories for all types of animals.

Download teaching activities, take quizzes or print the “For Creative Minds” section from the Arbordale website. You can also order your own copy in hardcover, paperback, or dual-language ebook in our store!

Book Launch: The Lucky Litter

It’s no secret; at Arbordale we are big fans of Jennifer Keats Curtis and her ability to write wonderful books about animals. This season she pairs up with John Gomes again to bring us The Lucky Litter: Wolf Pups Rescued from Wildfire. John’s beautiful photographs really bring out the personality in these cute pups and paired with Jennifer’s insightful words, this book is already getting praise…

“This is a charming tale full of child appeal for young readers who love true animal stories. The large font, bold type, and short but informative sentences make for easy, comfortable reading.” -Kirkus Reviews

Have you ever wondered how Jennifer begins a book, She was kind enough to share her process of creating The Lucky Litter:

Last year, a huge wildfire in Alaska consumed vast amounts of wilderness, forcing people and animals to leave their homes. I learned about this devastating fire from my buddy John Gomes, the Alaskan photographer with whom I’ve worked on Animal Helpers: Zoos and Kali’s Story: An Orphaned Polar Bear Rescue. With John’s update came a tip –  the Alaska Zoo was expecting five wolf pups just rescued along the Funny River Horse Trail. John was looking forward to photographing the babies. Was there a story here?

I began gathering information about the pups and the rescue, tracking down the firefighters, wildlife biologists, vet, and keepers involved in helping these animals. I also connected with Alaska residents who had been affected by the fire. As it turned out, the adult wolves caring for those pups had been driven away by the heat of that massive fire. They were unable to return for the babies. Fortunately, a firefighter found one of the pups and rushed to get help. It is clear that Gannett, X-Ray, Huslia, Hooper, and Stebbins would not have survived without human intervention. There was indeed a story here. The Lucky Litter is the true story of the little pack’s survival.

This story almost wasn’t written. There was a question about whether wolves are a good topic for a children’s book. It turns out that people feel strongly about wolves and tend to fall into one of two camps: they love them or they hate them. Those who love wolves are awed by their power, beauty, and strength. Those who hate wolves believe these animals are frightening and view them as vicious, eating machines.

It is true that wolves are predators. But, they play a crucial role in the ecosystem. The gray wolf is a keystone species. A keystone is the big, important stone at the top of an arch that holds all of the other stones in place. The keystone anchors the structure so that it does not collapse. Keystone species are animals that help all of the other animals in an ecosystem stay in place. Gray wolves may be small in number but they play a big role from the top of the food chain all the way to the bottom. They help maintain the balance between predator and prey. When a keystone species is harmed, the entire ecosystem suffers. This important premise is beautifully shown in the video How Wolves Change Rivers (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysa5OBhXz-Q) about the demise and reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone Park.

I am thrilled that this story has come to fruition. My goal in writing for children is to help young readers see what I’ve seen and learn what I’ve learned. For this book, I discovered a lot about wolves and wildfires. I had the opportunity to work with people who are making a difference in the lives of animals. The photos capture the personality of each of the wolves. What’s not to love?

Learn more about Jennifer and John’s work on the book’s page, but don’t forget to enter to win a copy of your own by commenting on this post!

Baltimore is the place to be

This weekend the Baltimore Book Festival will be featuring three Arbordale stars Jennifer Keats Curtis, author of the Animal Helpers series, Dr. Ellen Prager author of Sea Slime: It’s Eewy, Gooey and Under the Sea, and Susan Detwiler illustrator of On the Move. 

Saturday Dr. Prager will be presenting on the National Aquarium’s Ocean Exploration stage. She will be talking about her middle grade series and sharing her expertise on ocean life and sharks. The author of Sea Slime is a highly regarded expert in marine science and her presentation is Saturday, September 27th at 2:00pm.

If you love animals, you won’t want to miss author Jennifer Keats Curtis presentation with the National Aquarium on Sunday, September 28^th at 2:00pm. Jennifer will be talking about her books Animal Helpers; Aquariums and Turtles in My Sandbox. After her talk, the aquarium will have turtle hatchlings for kids to see and touch.

Jennifer presents in Maryland schools all year long, and she is also editor of a middle school based magazine My-Say. She has released seven books with Arbordale, and has two books set for release within the next year.

Illustrator Susan Detwiler will be signing books on Saturday in the festival tents. She has illustrated several books with Arbordale including: Panda’s Earthquake Escape, Big Cat, Little Kitty, and On the Move. Stop by and get her newest book.

See the entire schedule for the Baltimore Book festival here!

Find more information about these authors and illustrators as well as their books at Arbordale Publishing.

Meet Donovan, a Future Animal Helper

Arbordale Author Jennifer Keats Curtis regularly visits schools to talk about how she researches and writes her books about animals. During these visits, kids are often quite excited to share their own animal stories with her. Jennifer was particularly thrilled to hear about this 4th grader’s intriguing pastime.

Although he’s not quite 10, Donovan Neuhauser knows a lot about animals.

Perhaps it’s because the Joppa View Elementary School fourth grader is surrounded by them. (Literally, he’s surrounded. Look at the picture of Sushi, his Sulcata tortoise, climbing up into his lap so she can listen to the story he’s reading.)

Introduced to his first pet—a dog named Lowery—at the ripe old age of one, Donovan now shares his home with two dogs, three different kinds of turtles, a parakeet, and a hamster.

Sushi, the six-year-old Sulcata, is particularly sassy. Donovan’s mom, Melanie, was just supposed to foster the 27-pound African spurred tortoise, whom she’d received from a reptile rescue. But, the tortoise had such a bad attitude that the Neuhausers decided they had to keep her. When Sushi is hungry and apparently desperate for cherry tomatoes and broccoli, she rams the refrigerator. She’ll also push furniture…and other pets and people given the chance. The feisty reptile has also taken over the dogs’ bed, where she sleeps most of the time. At least Jake, the younger dog, shares. When he’s tired, he hops in and snuggles with her.

Because of her penchant for bright colors that may look like her favorite foods, Sushi has also been known to try to eat shoes and evencolored toenails. Fortunately, she licks before she bites, giving her possible treats fair warning…and time to leap out of the way.

In captivity, Sushi will live about 60 years and will continue to grow. She could reach 100 pounds in her lifetime.

Unfortunately, Sushi is not a big fan of the other household tortoise, Sheldon, who is considerably smaller. At 20 years old and only a few pounds, the Russian tortoise is full-grown. To keep Sheldon safe, the Neuhausers make sure he is happy in his big box and away from Sushi.

The Neuhausers’ other turtle is aquatic; he’s a baby snapper whom Donovan rescued from a cat’s mouth last fall. Donovan carefully feeds Gimli mealworms every day, and may release him once he gets bigger.

As if the turtles don’t keep him busy enough, Donovan also cares for Ralph the hamster and Kernel the parakeet. Currently, the only phrase Kernel utters, in his high squeaky voice, is “Hi, Sushi!”

Now, most kids might be wondering how in the world Donovan talked his mom into having so many pets. The truth is, he didn’t. Donovan’s mom, Melanie, also loves animals, and despite the hard work, especially cleaning up after them, they enjoy taking care of the animals together.

If you are considering getting a pet, or trying to talk your parents into letting you get one, Donovan offers some wonderful advice: “Research every animal before your bring it home. He visits his school library almost every week to check out a nonfiction book.”

When he grows up, Donovan would like to continue being around animals and to work in a veterinary clinic, like his mom.

 

Thank you Jennifer and Donovan for sharing this story with our readers. It looks like Donovan has a great head start on a career helping animals one day!