Animals and Nature

Not all of us are gifted with a green thumb. However, getting our hands dirty in the garden (or with whatever space you have) can be a fantastic opportunity for you and your child to learn about the natural world. Here are a few books and resources to inspire a love of plants this spring! 

Globe of wold made up of stacks and different formations of books

Add some picture books in translation to your reading routine! Picture books by international creators offer different perspectives, and feature groundbreaking art and narratives.

Caterpillar bites into a blade of grass.

Storybook Trails provide a wonderful opportunity for children to engage with print in the natural world. Spread out over 19 different state parks in Tennessee, this project shares stories from picture books about the natural world! What better way to transform a short hike into a learning experience?!

Little girl hangs upside own from a tree next to a boa constrictor

Zonia's Rain Forest by Juana Martinez-Neal goes beyond many bromidic books about the tragedy of global warming typically read for Earth Day. Zonia's vivacious spirit uproots the paradigm of a lifeless, victimized planet  in a way that truly honors our Mother Earth. Follow the young Asháninka heroine as she salutes each of her animal friends and decides to stand up for her forest home.

Cover of Kats Hats by Daniel Pinkwater. Image contains one boy wearing a blue and white striped scarf and an orange tabby cat in the shape of a hat on his head.

At Kat Hats Incorporated, cats are trained to serve as hats  for people looking for maximum warmth. Who is the warmest cat, however, and how will he rise to the challenge when his skills are called upon? 

Sea turtles are an important part of the web of life for the planet's survival.  The work of many individuals has made a difference in the survival of the species.  This article mentions one of them.

Cover of Bright Star by Yuyi Morales. Pink background with a fawn and cactus.

The publication of a new book by Yuyi Morales is always a cause for celebration—and for immediately placing a hold on one's library account. Published in September of this year, Bright Star is an incandescently beautiful picture book about love, courage, and caring for one another

From City Beautiful Scrapbook in 1956 - Ford Green Elementary students with anti-litter signs

Keeping the streets, rivers, and neighborhoods clean in this city over the years hasn't been easy, but one of the ways was with the City Beautiful Commission, that was established in 1953. In honor of Earth Day, here's a look at the commission that helped clean up the streets and neighborhoods in Nashville. 

The difficult periods of life will hurt, but beauty can still found within them. Katherine May recounts a painful season and the inevitability of sadness in her nonfiction book Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times.   

Tennessean photo from 2003 when the bears were being cleaned

Most citizens of this city that have lived here for a few years know what I'm referring to when I say the "Edgehill Polar Bears", but do you know the history of them? Well here are the "bear" necessities.

When it's super hot outside (feels like 105!), I like to take my mind off of the searing heat by reading some fun books about penguins. Don't you?

Whether you have room for a acre mini-farm or a single pot in a sunny window, your child can benefit from growing things! 

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Something that happens quite frequently in my house is bringing up the newest science information about dinosaurs. My husband has been obsessed since he was born, which means he can tell you about pretty much any kind of dinosaur and different facts to describe it.

Born in rural Kenya and educated in the United States, Wangari Maathai was the first woman in East Africa to earn a doctoral degree, a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, and is the founder of the Green Belt Movement. Her incredible story is the subject of several picture book biographies for children.

Have you ever read a book that you just want to hug when you finish? And maybe not let anyone else touch it until you’re ready to let it go? Maybe that's just a children's librarian thing? Anyway, I had that experience with Sealed with a Kiss by Beth Ferry.

Summer is a great time for getting outside and exploring all the tiny creatures that surround us. Check out these activities and books to help you and your kids learn more about all the creepy crawlies hiding in plain sight!

I’ve been wrong about a lot of things. The first time I used the internet I typed “X-Men” into a search engine and, finding the results unsatisfactory, said, “This will never catch on.”

The sun is out and it's getting warmer so that can only mean one thing: spring is on its way! Here are a few activities and books you and your little one can enjoy to get you out and into the garden.

Working in a library is a gift. There are no door-buster sales, no agitated customers (okay, maybe a few), and no Black Friday shenanigans. Instead of trampling over one another, our patrons wait patiently for the latest best sellers. Best of all, everything is free.

Do you have a little one that loves construction? or cats? or anything cute at all? This is one of those winning books that will appeal to most toddlers and preschoolers! 

Prior to the opening of the Nashville Zoo in Cheatham County, in 1991, the city came close to purchasing animals for a zoo around the time the Metro Government formed (1963). I recently stumbled upon this intriguing story and thought it was too good not to share. 

Sun and rain, dust and mud, good and bad bugs, the miracle of sprouting seed, tall sunflowers, morning glory vines, hummingbirds and butterflies...there’s never a bad day in the garden! 

The summer solstice was June 20. Let's celebrate the official beginnning of summer and learn about how the solstice has been, and still is, celebrated all over the world!

Happy Poetry Month! If you're not a big poetry fan, you need to check out Mary Oliver's new book because she'll convert you.

What? The library doesn't have enough weather books for you? Have no fear! ILL is here!!!