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Tag: middle grade nonfiction

September 8, 2023 by Betsy Bird

Review of the Day – Alone: The Journeys of Three Young Refugees by Paul Tom, ill. Mélanie Baillairgé, translated by Arielle Aaronson

“You have a family, friends, a home. You go to school, and like all children, you like to play. One day, a threat appears and changes everything.”

July 3, 2023 by Betsy Bird

Review of the Day: The Mona Lisa Vanishes by Nicholas Day, ill. Brett Helquist

The Mona Lisa Vanishes: A Legendary Painter, a Shocking Heist, and the Birth of a Global CelebrityBy Nicholas DayIllustrated by Brett HelquistRandom House Studio (and imprint of Random House Children’s Books)$22.99ISBN: 9780593643846Ages 9-12On shelves September 5th I sense that we are on the brink of something. I’ve sensed it for a while. Do you remember […]

December 28, 2022 by Betsy Bird

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2022 Nonfiction Books for Older Readers

One thing you will definitely find here today are my favorite reads for older kids in 2022, if those kids happen to be into nonfiction and informational books. These are lean, mean, fact-spouting machines and they are perfect for fact-loving kids.

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“Provocatively Nuanced”: The Humanizing of Jackie Robinson

September 21, 2022 by Betsy Bird

Not your parents' Jackie Robinson biography. Meet the men behind the "myth-breaking" book CALL HIM JACK and hear why it's possible to write a heroic bio with nuance.

31 Days, 31 Lists: 2021 Nonfiction Books for Older Readers

December 27, 2021 by Betsy Bird

Here's a brief smattering of some of the books that I think are deserving of your time and attention. If you know a kid that loves their informational texts, something on this list is bound to whet their whistle.

Review of the Day: Timelines From Black History: Leaders, Legends, Legacies by D.K. Publishing

June 22, 2021 by Betsy Bird

This book is NOT the only book on the subject that will ever be written, but right now it appears to be the only book so far. And I’m just relieved that it was good to begin with. A beautifully designed supplement.

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31 Days, 31 Lists: 2020 Nonfiction for Older Readers

December 28, 2020 by Betsy Bird

A sliver of the magnificent nonfiction for older readers on offer to kids in 2020.

Review of the Day : We Are Power by Todd Hasak-Lowy

May 13, 2020 by Betsy Bird

You don’t need to be a president or a military leader to change the world. Anyone can do it but it takes faith and numbers. It takes smarts and skills and morals. And what it really takes is a knowledge of history. Of what works and what doesn’t. It takes this book. Now hand it to someone who needs it.

Review of the Day: A History of Pictures for Children by David Hockney & Martin Gayford

November 8, 2018 by Betsy Bird

A History of Pictures for Children By David Hockney & Martin Gayford Illustrated by Rose Blake Abrams Books for Young Readers $24.99 ISBN: 978-1-4197-3211-9 Ages 9-12 On shelves now. And now, a couple words about expository nonfiction. I . . . . Hey! Hey, where the heck do you people think you’re going? Come right […]

31 Days, 31 Lists: Day 28 – 2016 Great Nonfiction Chapter Books for Kids

December 28, 2016 by Betsy Bird

I peer into the darkness and at long last I see the light at the end of the tunnel.  We’re almost there!  Almost at the end of this month’s 31 Days, 31 Lists challenge.  I’m certainly delighted, not least because I’ve managed to keep it up so far (knocking on wood now as hard as […]

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