THE SQUIRRELS' BUSY YEAR

Muted, mixed-media illustrations pair nicely with spare, poetic text that depicts the seasons in a forest.

An owl sits in a hole in a tree, “keeping an eye on things” as each new season begins and ends. Squirrels first seen curled up in a tree soon seek food as snowflakes drift down; birds and frogs liven up the pond in spring but quiet down in summer heat; the squirrels scurry about once again in fall as the frogs burrow their way into the mud below the pond. This book doesn’t shy away from presenting natural dangers—when the owl goes hunting, squirrels must beware. And summer lightning hits the owl’s tree—will it escape in time? Winter comes again, and so does a new perspective: Readers peek out through a hole in the tree from deep inside the squirrels’ den to see the owl flying past. This first introduction to the science of seasons and animal behavior features painterly, detailed illustrations that enchant and instruct, illuminating and extending the lively, approachable, often onomatopoeic text. Frontmatter explains why we have seasons and certain weather patterns such as thunderstorms; complementary backmatter offers both topical discussion questions and a subject index, which further lend this book to STEM-related storytimes and activities.

A lyrical introduction to STEM for budding scientists, animal lovers, and artists everywhere