Congratulations, Lisa Varchol Perron, on WONDER WHY!

Thank you so much for sharing the release of WONDER WHY with us! Young readers love STEAM books and I’m sure yours will find many happy readers. Can you share with us a bit about the inspiration for this book? What was your initial spark?

Thank you for having me on your blog, Nancy! Two distinct moments came together to inspire WONDER WHY. The first was driving with my daughters on a beautiful day and looking out the window at a stunningly blue sky. I spoke directly to the sky and asked, “Why are you so blue today, sky?” Then a version of the opening stanza of the book started to form in my head. I kept repeating the words aloud until we arrived at our destination, and I could write them down. (My kids aren’t exactly fans of this writing method, but they’re accustomed to it!) I only had one stanza and didn’t know where it would go from there. Then, a few weeks later, I heard a commercial on the radio. A young girl asks her dad why the sky is blue, and he replies, “To match your beautiful eyes.” Ugh! Then the child tells him that he’s wrong, and she goes on to explain Rayleigh scattering. I’m pretty sure I clapped when I heard her response! I kept thinking about how kids are not only incredibly curious, they’re also incredibly capable of understanding complex concepts. So that was the spark for turning that initial stanza into a picture book, with a kid asking questions about our natural world and getting direct, accurate answers from nature.

Writing STEAM books requires a substantial amount of research. Often it is the most fun part of our writing process. Did you meet any challenges in your research journey? It can be challenging to distill scientific information and communicate it in a clear and engaging way for readers, but it’s a challenge I enjoy. Sometimes when I’m starting a new STEAM project, I’ll start with a stack of books from the library before I start writing. Other times, I’ll dive into the writing to get a better sense of the research I need to do. This book was a bit of a mix. I wrote some of the “question” spreads and then turned to journal articles, websites, and books to help inform the answers. Once I had a complete draft, I asked a meteorologist from MIT to read it, and she provided feedback on the scientific explanations and sent me a few more articles to read. I did my best to incorporate her suggestions while also working within the space constraints of a picture book. Often one of the most difficult parts of crafting our books is not deciding what to include, but deciding what to leave out. What did you choose to leave out of this book and why?

That’s very true! For this book, I decided to use the arc of a day with a storm brewing, and from there it became clear to me which weather phenomena I would include—starting with a kid marveling at the blue morning sky until it becomes windy, clouds form, thunder rumbles, it rains, and finally, a rainbow appears. The explanations in the main text needed to remain succinct to fit with the rhyme and meter, and I wanted them to match the “personality” I imagined for the sky, cloud, thunder, and so on. I also knew that it would be helpful to have back matter or sidebars to expand on each of the explanations provided in the main text. In early drafts, I struggled to pare down the back matter. For example, I initially included a detailed discussion about the polarization of charges that create lightning, but thanks to my critique partners, I realized that I needed to simplify. It helps to remind myself that my goal is to deepen kids’ understanding of how things work in our natural world, and not to write a textbook. What tip can you share with teachers who want to use your book in the classroom? WONDER WHY has curricular tie-ins with the Next Generation Science Standards (ESS2.D: Weather and Climate). If the class has already done some pre-reading about weather, consider having students look at the question pages first and consider how they might answer. For younger students who are new to the science concepts, you can focus on the personification of nature in the book and ask students to write a short poem from the perspective of a natural phenomenon, like a cloud, thunder, or a rainbow.

Congratulations on this book release! What comes next for you? Can you give us a peek at what you are currently researching? Thank you so much, Nancy, and thanks again for having me! Most of my books so far have been STEAM, but the next two are very different. In September, THE LITTLEST SOLSTICE TREE (illustrated by Ahya Kim) releases with Beaming Books. It’s a picture book about a young evergreen who longs to be crowned “Tree of the Year” during the annual winter solstice celebration, and there is some brief back matter about the history of trees in winter solstice—and Christmas—celebrations. I also have a soon-to-be announced fiction picture book coming out in 2026 that deals with mental health issues. In addition to writing, I’ve worked as a psychotherapist for almost twenty years and am passionate about challenging any stigma around mental health struggles and treatment.

About the author: Lisa Varchol Perron is the author of several books and more than seventy poems for kids. In addition to Wonder Why, her current books include the Junior Library Guild Selection Patterns Everywhere, All the Rocks We Love (named a 2024 Best Science Book for Kids by NPR’s Science Friday), and the board books My Love For You, Tell Me About Oceans, and Tell Me About Space (an NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book). She lives outside of Boston, Massachusetts with her family. For more about Lisa and her writing, please visit https://lisaperronbooks.com/

The time for wolves is DIRE!

News spread this week about the de-extinction of a dire wolf. Dire wolves went extinct in the wild over 10,000 years ago. They are still extinct. Some wolves, however, have been rescued from the brink of extinction. Sadly, none from extinction.

The so-called dire wolf pups are genetically modified wolves. Let's talk implications. Wolves have been brought to the brink of extinction many times. Many wolf species are currently threatened or endangered. Tragically, just days ago, a Mexican gray wolf 2996, named Ella, was found dead in New Mexico. Are we equipped to handle another Canis species? It is dangerous to resurect extinct species, even though we'd love for them to be back in our world. But these are not genetically dire wolves, and if they were, their niche doesn't exist anymore. These two young wolf pups will most likely live and die in captivity, but should they be released or escape into the wild, they risk disprupting an ecosystem and mating. Hybridizing with another wolf species, a coyote, or a dog would create another Canis subspecies. It is difficult now to protect our wolf species -- Imagine if another subspecies further disprupts our living, essential wolf populations. It would greatly threaten ecological balance!

Let's talk ethics. That brings us all back to Jurassic Park and Dr. Ian Malcolm, one of my all-time favorite characters. "Life finds a way." "Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should." "Life will not be contained. Life breaks free, it expenads new territories and crashes through barriers, painfully, maybe even dangerously." Is is right to resurrect a species so that it can live and die in captivity? And if not what is their future? These adorable little pups are a vanity project that could have implications beyond our control.

Congratulations, Jessica Stremer, on PLIGHT OF THE PELICAN!

Thank you so much for sharing the release of PLIGHT OF THE PELICAN: How Science Saved a Species with us! Young readers love STEAM books and I’m sure yours will find many happy readers. Can you share with us a bit about the inspiration for this book? What was your initial spark?

Pelicans are one of my favorite birds. I tried writing a story about them years ago, but it just wasn’t working. Each year Vivian Kirkfield hosts 50 Precious Words writing competition. We were on vacation traveling up the coast of California when I began brainstorming ideas. Pelicans once again popped into my head, but this time I knew exactly what approach I wanted to take. My 50 Precious Words entry received honorable mention, and I decided to flush it out into a new draft, sticking to the sparse language while working in some layered text. Eventually that layered text became part of the story.

Writing STEAM books requires a substantial amount of research. Often it is the most fun part of our writing process. Did you meet any challenges in your research journey? With eight species of pelicans existing in the world, I had to be mindful of my research and narrow down which species I wanted to highlight in the story. I chose to focus on the brown pelican. Going forward I had to make sure that my research aligned with what was true for that species. Often one of the most difficult parts of crafting our books is not deciding what to include, but deciding what to leave out. What did you choose to leave out of this book and why? Rachel Carson played a huge role in advocating for endangered species, and her book Silent Spring exposed the hazards of pesticides like DDT. But there are already several children’s books about Rachel. I chose to leave her mostly out of the story to help make my book different from others in the market.

What tip can you share with teachers who want to use your book in the classroom? PLIGHT OF THE PELICANS can be used in a variety of ways across the curriculum and at different grade levels, including lessons about food chains and relationships in ecosystems, to history, activism, and scientific discovery. I hope to offer an educator’s guide on my website soon!

Congratulations on this book release! What comes next for you? Can you give us a peek at what you are currently researching? My next book, WONDERFULLY WILD: Rewilding a School and Community publishes May 6th and then TRAPPED IN THE TAR PITS: How Paleontologists Unearthed a City’s Prehistoric Past publishes August 26th of this year. In between different publicity events, I’m researching another book about fossils and adding to my always growing “to be written” idea list.

About the author: Jessica Stremer is an award-winning children’s author who combines her love of science and writing to create books that inspire kids to explore and think critically about the world around them. Her books have received multiple starred reviews and have been designated as School Library Journal Gold Standard Selections, Cook Prize Silver Medal recipient, NYPL Best Book of the Year, and NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book. Jessica obtained a B.S. in Biology from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. When not writing you can find her cheering from the sideline of her kids’ soccer games and planning her next family adventure.

Congratulations, Patricia Newman on SHARKS UNHOOKED!

Thank you so much for sharing the release of Sharks Unhooked: The Adventures of Cristina Zenato, Underwater Ranger with us!

Young readers love STEAM books and I’m sure yours will find many happy readers. Can you share with us a bit about the inspiration for this book? What was your initial spark? In early 2021, Planet Ocean had just released, and I was researching and writing A River’s Gifts. I happened across a dramatic video of Cristina Zenato, a scuba diver who removed hooks from sharks. I watched it over and over. Then I started Googling. The more I read, the more I knew I’d just found an unusual and powerful new book idea. I reached out to Cristina via email on June 1, 2021, with a request for a 20-minute chat and crossed my fingers. She replied on June 2, and we’ve had an amazing partnership ever since. Her work is so amazing, I donated part of my advance for Sharks Unhooked to Cristina’s nonprofit organization, People of the Water, dedicated to changing our relationship with our aquatic world. Writing STEAM books requires a substantial amount of research. Often it is the most fun part of our writing process. Did you meet any challenges in your research journey? I agree. I often dive down a research rabbit hole and resurface wondering what my original question was! Finding the perfect information is rewarding, but often challenging. Sharks Unhooked, however, was my easiest book to research. Cristina made herself available for my many, many questions and she was an integral part of the editing process. Her website is loaded with photos and videos taken by her partner Kewin Lorenzen (see back matter spread below with a few of Kewin’s photos). The images were a terrific resource for watching Cristina interact with the sharks and removing the hooks from various parts of their bodies. Additionally, there are so many books and online resources about all-things shark, that I never lacked corroborating information. I particularly love Cristina’s focus on the public’s perception of sharks. Mainstream media has saddled sharks with an image problem. Throughout Sharks Unhooked we portray sharks as the beings they are designed to be – “stealthy hunters, seeing, circling.” They are complex beings with brains, personalities, and gentle sides. “No animal is vicious or useless,” Cristina says. “Every animal has a role and a vital importance in the chain of nature.”

Caption: From Sharks Unhooked: The Adventures of Cristina Zenato, Underwater Ranger, by Patricia Newman, illustrated by Becca Hall (Millbrook Press, 2025). Photo credits: Kewin Lorenzen Photography Often one of the most difficult parts of crafting our books is not deciding what to include but deciding what to leave out. What did you choose to leave out of this book and why? Ah, focus! Picture books always have a limited amount of real estate, right? I could have included a bunch of information about sharks, but Sharks Unhooked isn’t an all-about-sharks book. It’s about one woman’s determination to relieve the suffering of the animals she loves. Between the text and the back matter, there are enough facts for most shark lovers, but the crux of the story is Cristina’s relationship with these predators and how that bond allows her to get close enough to help them. (research photo – please embed my book trailer which includes research video - https://youtu.be/Z_SPhtqRh3s) What tip can you share with teachers who want to use your book in the classroom? I think Sharks Unhooked would make a great anchor text, integrating a variety of content areas. After reading the book, try these ideas: • Social Emotional Learning: Cristina felt different from other kids when she was younger. Explore what it means to feel different. What are some strategies to celebrate your differences? • Social studies + geography: Find the Bahamas on a map. What does it mean to be an island nation? What bodies of water surround it? What other types of marine animals live in the waters surrounding the Bahamas? • Language arts/writing: Write a poem from a shark’s point of view about how it feels to be hooked. • Language arts/vocabulary: Ask students to define unfamiliar words in context. • Science + language aArts/reading for details: What are some of the problems sharks face in our ocean? Find evidence in the book. How do human habits cause these problems? Brainstorm ways we can help sharks by changing our habits or spreading awareness. • Math: Map the places Caribbean reef sharks are found using a coordinate plane. Cristina lives in Freeport, Grand Bahama Island. Calculate how far the Caribbean reef sharks might be swimming to find her to remove their hooks. • Language arts/reading companion texts: Read one or more of the other shark books listed in the back of Sharks Unhooked. Ask students to compare them against Sharks Unhooked. What’s different? What’s similar?

Caption: From Sharks Unhooked: The Adventures of Cristina Zenato, Underwater Ranger, by Patricia Newman, illustrated by Becca Hall (Millbrook Press, 2025) Congratulations on this book release! What comes next for you? Can you give us a peek at what you are currently researching? Thank you! I have a 2026 title releasing with Peachtree Publishing called Beatrice and the Nightingale. Beatrice Harrison was a famous English cellist in the early 20th century. One evening while practicing in her garden, a nightingale accompanied Beatrice’s cello. Beatrice marveled at the bird’s complex song and convinced the head of the BBC to come to her garden and broadcast this unusual cello-nightingale concert. At the time, radio was a new medium, so Beatrice’s request was no easy feat. Beatrice and the Nightingale celebrates a wonderful connection between music, nature, and STEM that I’m thrilled to share.

About the author: Sibert Honor author Patricia Newman uses nature to empower her readers to seek connections to the real world and to use their imaginations to act on behalf of their communities. Patricia’s nonfiction titles have received multiple starred reviews, two Orbis Pictus Recommended Awards (NCTE), two Green Earth Book Awards, and several Eureka! Awards (CRA). All her nonfiction titles are Junior Library Guild Selections, and most have been included in the Bank Street College’s Best Books of the Year lists. To learn more, visit her website at patriciamnewman.com or connect with her on BlueSky (@patricianewman.bsky.social), X (@PatriciaNewman), Instagram (@patricianewmanbooks), Facebook (@PatriciaNewmanBooks).