Geo Librarian

49 MILES ALONE by Natalie D. Richards Sourcebooks Fire, 2024 ISBN:   9781728276007 Source: NetGalley--eARC from publisher for review Ages 14-18 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK Four days alone in the desert. Except they're not as alone as they think. A year ago, Katie and her cousin Aster survived a night that left their world and easy friendship fractured. Desperate to heal and leave the past behind them, they tackle four days of hiking in the Utah backcountry. But the desert they've loved for years has tricks up its sleeve. An illness, an injury, and a freak storm leave them short on confidence and supplies. When they come across a young couple with extra supplies on the trail, they're grateful and relieved―at first. Riley exudes friendliness, but everything about her boyfriend Finn spells trouble. That night, after some chilling admissions about Finn from Riley, Katie and As...

  THE SHAPE OF THINGS: How Mapmakers Picture Our World written by Dean Robbins, illustrated by Matt Tavares Alfred A. Knopf, 2024 ISBN: 978-0-593-47925-4 Source: Blue Slip Media Ages 4-8 Nonfiction All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher & Blue Slip Media. ABOUT THE BOOK How did the first people explore the land they lived on? How did civilizations expand their boundaries and chart courses into new lands? Learn about the history of cartography across cultures in this ode to mapmaking through the ages. Join history's first mapmakers as they explore the wonders of the world! In these pages, you’ll find the tools ancient people used to depict their surroundings, methods different cartographers developed to survey new lands, and how we’ve arrived at modern mapmaking today. Above all else, the thread that runs throughout thousands of years of civilization is the spirit of exploration that helps us measure the shape of things aroun...

  OLIVETTI written by Allie Millington Feiwel and Friends, 2024 ISBN: 978-1-250-32693-5 Source: purchased Ages 9-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK A heartfelt novel praised by Tom Hanks in the New York Times as including "a conclusion nearly impossible to divine and yet so perfect it includes that most tactile of memories..." Being a typewriter is not as easy as it looks. Surrounded by books (notorious attention hogs) and recently replaced by a computer, Olivetti has been forgotten by the Brindle family—the family he’s lived with for years. The Brindles are busy humans, apart from 12-year-old Ernest, who would rather be left alone with his collection of Oxford English Dictionaries. The least they could do was remember Olivetti once in a while, since he remembers every word they’ve typed on him. It’s a thankless job, keeping memories alive. Olivetti gets a rare glimpse of action fro...

A ROYAL CONUNDRUM The Misfits #1 written by Lisa Yee, illustrated by Dan Santat Random House, 2024 ISBN: 978-0-593-90562-3 Source: purchased Ages 9-12 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK When a notorious thief is out for priceless treasure (gems! cats! general decorum!)—who're you gonna call? An elite team of crime-fighting underdogs, that's who! The Misfits are on the case in this hilarious illustrated series from Newbery Honoree Lisa Yee and Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat! “For any kid who’s felt like a misfit, this crackling adventure packs a wallop!” —Lincoln Peirce, creator of Big Nate and Max & the Midknights Olive Cobin Zang has . . . issues. And they mostly aren’t her fault. (No, really!) Though she often slips under the radar, problems have a knack for finding her. So, imagine her doubts when she’s suddenly dropped off at the strangest boarding school a former castle turne...

  VACATION Bat, Cat & Rat #2 written by American Dyckman, illustrated by Mark Teague Beach Lane Books, 2024 ISBN: 978-1-6659-3044-4 Source: publisher for review (Thanks!) Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK In the second book in the Bat, Cat & Rat picture book series from New York Times bestsellers Ame Dyckman and Mark Teague, the roommates try to compromise on vacation plans in three-and-a-half sweet and silly stories. Bat, Cat, and Rat decide they need a vacation, but planning a trip is no picnic. Conflicts, compromise, and some well-meaning pranks ensue as prep work brings out the trio’s mischievous side. In “Working,” Bat, Cat, and Rat discover their Vacation Jar is empty, and set off working odd jobs to save up funds. But Rat believes that all work and no play is no fun at all—and he knows just the way to fix that. In “Choosing,” the trio can’t decide where to go on ...

  HELLO, I'M A SLOTH Meet the Wild Things by Hayley & John Rocco G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2024 ISBN: 978-0-593-61812-7 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK Say hello to a sloth, and learn all about this incredible endangered species—and why they need protecting—in this clever, funny, and informative nonfiction picture book, illustrated by a Caldecott Honoree. Did you know sloths only poop once a week? Or that they can fall up to 100 feet without getting hurt? They have hundreds of bugs living on them, including a species of moths that only lives on sloths! And they move so slowly that algae grows on their fur, which—far from being gross—can actually helpsloths by camouflaging them from predators. Chock-full of amazing, kid-friendly facts and inviting artwork from the #1 New York Times bestselling illustrator of Blackout, the Meet the Wild Things ser...

ELSE B. IN THE SEA: The Woman Who Painted the Wonders of the Deep by Jeanne Walker Harvey, illustrated by Melodie Stacey Cameron Kids, 2024 ISBN: 978-1-949480-28-3 Source: Blue Slip Media for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & illustrations provided by publisher through Blue Slip Media. Book summary provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. ABOUT THE BOOK Else B. in the Sea is a poetic picture book biography about a daring and pioneering woman artist that combines themes of art and science from author Jeanne Walker Harvey and illustrator Melodie Stacey. Else Bostelmann donned a red swimsuit and a copper diving helmet and, with paints and brushes in hand, descended into the choppy turquoise sea off the coast of Bermuda. It was 1930, and few had ventured deep into the sea before. She discovered a fairyland six fathoms below the surface—fantastic coral castles, glittering sunbeams, swaying sea plumes, and slender purple sea fans. And fish! F...