Brrr. Is it winter yet? Was that snow outside? Here’s a way to welcome winter with my guest author today, Maria Gianferrari, and her list of picture books about ice! Her newest picture book celebrates the ice cycle!
We are also giving away a copy of Ice Cycle: Poems About the Life of Ice. To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter at the bottom.
Ice Cycle: Poems About the Life of Ice by Maria Gianferrari, illustrated by Jieting Chen
This lovely poetry book celebrates the wonderful world of ice all around us. [picture book, ages 5 and up]
5 Picture Books Showcasing the Diversity of Ice
Iceberg: A Life in Seasons by Claire Saxby, illustrated by Jess Racklyeft
A lovely and poetic account of an Antarctic iceberg through the seasons in a thriving tundra ecosystem complemented by a serene blue-green color palette. The back matter includes info on global warming and climate change. [picture book, ages 5 and up]
Ice!: Poems about Polar Life by Douglas Florian
Funny and punny poems and lively colored pencil and oil pastel art about all manner of icy regions from the Arctic to the Antarctic and the creatures who call these icy regions home, from the tiniest krill, to the gigantic blue whales, from the “TALON”ted snowy oil and the “emperor of ice” penguin and more. [picture book, ages 5 and up]
The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter’s Wonder by Mark Cassino and John Nelson, Ph.D., illustrated by Nora Aoyagi
Learn how snow crystals form, starting with a speck, and fall from the sky through intricate photos of real snow crystals in all their crystalline glory. [picture book, ages 3 and up]
The Secret Life of a Snowflake: An Up-Close Look at the Art & Science of Snowflakes by Kenneth Libbrecht
Science and art fuse in this STEAM-y photographic account of snowflake crystals and the physics of crystal formation from columns to needles to ferns from Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, a Professor of Physics who studies crystal growth.
You learn more about crystals at Dr. Libbrecht’s website, snowcrystals.com [picture book, ages 5 and up]
Last but certainly not least is a favorite picture book biography that I re-read each winter …
Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin, with illustrations by Mary Azarian
Though this winner of the Caldecott Medal was published nearly 25 years ago, it’s a timeless, classic, and beautiful biography of farmer-scientist-photographer and Vermonter, Wilson Bentley, and features Mary Azarian’s woodcut-watercolor illustrations. Bentley’s passion for snow, “as beautiful as butterflies,” and his endless wonder of the white stuff led him to develop the technique of micro-photography to capture the ephemeral beauty of snowflakes.
View more of Wilson Bentley’s magical snowflake crystal photographs at SnowflakeBentley.com. [picture book, ages 4 and up]
Want to learn more about ice? Read ICE CYCLE! Lerner Books is giving away a copy of ICE CYCLE to one lucky Pragmatic Mom reader (US continental addresses only.) Good luck!
Thanks again for featuring ICE CYCLE on your blog, Mia!
Ice Cycle: Poems About the Life of Ice GIVEAWAY!
We are also giving away a copy of Ice Cycle: Poems About the Life of Ice. To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter below. We can only mail to U.S. and A.F.O. addresses.
Maria Gianferrari thinks ice is nice. After seeing editor Carol Hinz’s feathery frost photos on Instagram, she was inspired to find out more. During her research, Maria was amazed by all the diverse kinds of ice that exist, and this book was born. Her favorite form is pancake ice. Maria lives in Massachusetts with her family, where winters usually bring ice and snow. You can learn more about Maria at her brand new website, mariagianferrari.com.
p.s. Related posts:
Top Ten Picture Books about Pets
Let’s Fete: Dogs and Mindfulness Tails
Celebrate Tree Picture Books for Earth Day
Top 10 STEM Bird Books for Bird-Watching Kids
Top 10 STEM Expository Nonfiction Picture Books
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My books:
Food for the Future: Sustainable Farms Around the World
- Junior Library Guild Gold selection
- Selected as one of 100 Outstanding Picture Books of 2023 by dPICTUS and featured at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair
- Starred review from School Library Journal
- Chicago Library’s Best of the Best
- Imagination Soup’s 35 Best Nonfiction Books of 2023 for Kids
Amazon / Barefoot Books / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Scholastic / Signed or Inscribed by Me
My favorite winter book is The Mitten by Jan Brett.
Love her art, Danielle! One of my favorites of hers is Trouble with Trolls–so cute! And always appreciate the visual sub-stories in all of her work and this one is especially adorable.
And thanks for hosting our giveaway, Mia!
One of my favorite winter books is the poetry collection WINTER BEES, by Joyce Sidman. I’m super excited about Maria’s new poetry collection ICE CYCLE!
HUGE fan of Joyce Sidman, and thought of including it, but wanted to just focus on ice. Thanks for replying, Michelle!
My granddaughters love for me to read Owl Moon to them. Then they want us to go out owling.
Another favorite! Such a beautiful and timeless classic!
I love the luminous art in Polar Express–no wonder it’s a Caldecott Medal winner! The story is magical, too.
One of my favorite books on the list is Snowflake Bentley. Snowflake Bentley is a terrific way to introduce biographies, weather, and STEM to young children!
I love Snowflake Bentley and of course all things Jan Brett.
There are humorous and punny rhymes and bright colored pencil and oil pastel artwork depicting a variety of frigid places, from the Arctic to the Antarctic, and the species that inhabit them, from the smallest krill to the largest penguins.