Best Children's Forest & Tree Books

From perennials to bulbs to tropical exotica, Botanicum is a wonderful feast of botanical knowledge complete with superb cross sections of how plants work. A beautifully constructed compendium of plant life from around the world that offers up a visual and informational treat for future botanists and casual browsers alike...The large format, sumptuous artwork, and thoughtful writing put this one a cut above the rest and make this a must-have for any library that can house it. As in companion volume Animalium by Jenny Broom and also illustrated by Scott (2014), the digitally colored images are not drawn to scale but are rendered with as much attention to visual impact as to exact, formal anatomical detail...a big, decorative, eye-filling survey.

With illustrations made from actual fall leaves and die-cut pages on every spread that reveal gorgeous landscape vistas, here is a playful, whimsical, and evocative book that celebrates the natural world and the rich imaginative life of children. With a body made of fallen leaves and acorns for eyes, Leaf Man takes off from a backyard and flutters away on the breeze, meandering past animals, over fields of fall vegetables, above waterways, and across prairie meadows. From ducks to pumpkins to fish, all of the objects described are fashioned out of life-size leaves of various shapes, sizes, and hues and set against backgrounds of textured paper.

With each of six spreads featuring one spectacular, large pop-up as well as booklets of smaller pop-ups and text, ENCYCLOPEDIA PREHISTORICA: DINOSAURS is a magnificent display of paper engineering and creativity — an astonishing book that will be read, admired, and treasured forever.

Open the book, and the reader is swept into the magic of an underwater world, face-to-face with a floating Yellow-Banded Sweetlips; with a glow-in-the-dark Deep-Sea Anglerfish; with a Sea Horse swaying in balletic motion; with a Sand Tiger Shark gliding along the ocean floor, its gaze haunting, its hook-toothed mouth gulping open and closed. “Showcasing stunning photographic images that ripple with movement, Dan Kainen fully immerses readers in a captivating underwater realm. (The Bookseller). “Showcasing stunning photographic images that ripple with movement, Dan Kainen fully immerses readers in a captivating underwater realm.

Putting on his red suit, he goes outside and places gifts under the tree for his animals, bringing holiday cheer to all. Clever lift-the-flaps reveal the animals hidden under the snow in the farmer's dream, making this board book edition a treat for all ages. "Few in number are the parents who have made it through their toddler's years on just one copy of Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar . Dream Snow has similar ingredients: a simple story, lively collage-like illustrations and a fun gimmick for little hands . "The pictures are in Carle's trademark richly colored and textured collages that capture the snowy magic of Christmas." Young fans of Eric Carle's The Very Quiet Cricket , The Very Clumsy Click Beetle , and other multisensory books, will delight in pushing the same microchip button the farmer pushes to hear the tinkling, oddly eerie holiday tune. In an even more unusual departure from standard picture books, Carle inserts a clear plastic sheet, covered with snowflakes and a white blanket, before each illustration of the dreaming farmer and his animals.

Targeted to rock-crazy kids, this bold book is more energetic, more visually exciting, and more fun than anything else on the market—and with more information, too! Tomecek has served as the associate director of the Science Museum of Long Island and as the science program supervisor for the New York Hall of Science.

This New York Times bestselling modern classic explores the perennial topic of environmentalism in an urban world, from the creator of The Wild Robot and Mr. Tiger Goes Wild. Peter Brown is the author and illustrator of many bestselling children's books, including Children Make Terrible Pets, The Curious Garden , and The Wild Robot .

Can a robot survive in the wilderness? 2018 Sunshine State Young Readers Award List Pick. "Brown has written a lively tale that is sure to engage young readers. "Roz may not feel emotions, but young readers certainly will as this tender, captivating tale unfolds. * "[Peter] Brown's picture books are consistent bestsellers and critically acclaimed. * "Brown's middle-grade debut, an uplifting story about an unexpected visitor whose arrival disrupts the animal inhabitants of a rocky island, has a contemporary twist...Brown wisely eschews a happy ending in favor of an open-ended one that supports the tone of a story that's simultaneously unsentimental and saturated with feeling.

Journey into the mysterious world under the sea as 3-D pop-ups swing off the page, bringing to life whales, dolphins, angler fish, and much more! Using the ocean as their milieu, the Santoros (pop-up creators of Journey to the Moon, 2007, and Predators, 2008) provide solid information along with amazing visuals.

Targeted to rock-crazy kids, this bold book is more energetic, more visually exciting, and more fun than anything else on the market—and with more information, too! Tomecek has served as the associate director of the Science Museum of Long Island and as the science program supervisor for the New York Hall of Science.