White Pine: Poems and Prose Poems by Mary Oliver

4 stars Another stunning collection from Oliver. I especially love her musings and observations of nature. The way she describes birds is absolutely perfect. Themes of this collection include nature, love, death, and aging. A few of my favorite poems here are “Porcupine”, “In a Dark Wood: Wood Thrushes”, “Stories”, and “I Looked Up”. A…

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For Every One by Jason Reynolds

5 stars A fantastically-worded poetic letter about figuring it out, being enough, and chasing your dreams. Wonderful imagery. Full of power, inspiration, and the vulnerability of admitting you don’t know it all. I loved the visual elements of the text with changes in fonts, sizes, and grayscale highlighting. Pure Reynolds. Lyrical, powerful, inspirational, and honest….

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Blue Horses by Mary Oliver

3 stars Another beautiful collection of poems. This one didn’t resonate with me quite as strongly as the other collections I’ve read from her, but it was still a wonderful read. A nice exploration of life, nature, and relationships. Goodreads

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My Little Pony: Art is Magic!, Vol. 1

5 stars A fascinating look at the process of creating the My Little Pony comics. Learn more about how a variety of comic artists bring the stories to life. Featuring interviews and artwork from Tony Fleecs, Jay P. Fosgitt, Agnes Garbowska, Brenda Hickey, Andy Price, and Sara Richard. I loved exploring the different iterations of…

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From Garden to Pickle by Penelope S. Nelson

2 stars A simple look at how pickles are made for early readers. Simple narration paired with bright stock photos provides an overview of how pickles are made. Doesn’t provide much detail beyond pick, scrub, add brine, seal, and wait. Short, simple sentences between 1 to 7 words long. I did enjoy the infographic at…

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Every Day, Chemistry by Julia Sooy

Illustrated by Bonnie Pang 3 stars A adorable exploration of chemical reactions in everyday life. From baking to cleaning to breathing, Sooy shows how we interact with chemistry every day and how necessary it is to so many different activities. This is a wonderful introduction to thinking about chemistry for young readers. The simple text…

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