Titan and the Wild Boars: The True Cave Rescue of the Thai Soccer Team

Titan and the Wild Boars: The True Cave Rescue of the Thai Soccer Team
by Susan Hood and Pathana Sornhiran, illustrated by Dow Phumiruk
New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2019

On June 23, 2018, young Titan, 11 of his Wild Boar soccer teammates, and their coach set off to explore a local cave in northern Thailand. Outside, monsoon rains began to fall, and the team quickly became trapped. As the water levels rose in the cave, they wondered if they would be it back out.

This book details the harrowing ordeal faced by the boys and their coach, as divers and rescue personnel from all around the world raced against the clock and weather to save them. Author Pathana Sornhiran provides her firsthand accounts of the events, and Susan Hood's prose compliments Dow Phumiruk's illustrations. While the publisher lists this book for ages 5+, I personally think it may be too disturbing for younger readers; there is a constant theme of danger and peril, and Petty Officer First Class Saman Kunan's death and sacrifice is discussed on multiple occasions. However, this is a truly incredible book that I highly recommend for older readers. 

Seashells: More Than a Home

Seashells: More Than a Home
by Melissa Stewart, illustrated by Sarah S. Brahhen
Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge, 2019

Seashells are among the most familiar treasures one can find on the beach. While they provide a home for mollusks, they can also do a number of weird, wonderful things! Seashells can pry open other shells like a crowbar, curl up like an armadillo, and even let light in! Beautifully illustrated, this book introduces you to 13 different species from around the globe.  

Queen of Physics: How Wu Chien Shiung Helped Unlock the Secrets of the Atom

Queen of Physics: How Wu Chien Shiung Helped Unlock the Secrets of the Atom
by Teresa Roberson, illustrated by Rebecca Huang
New York: Sterling Children's Books, 2019

Wu Chien Shiung was born in a small village in China in 1912. Her parents were very unusual for the time in that they not only encouraged her to go to school, but had actually started school for girls! Later she would go to a girls' school 50 miles away, and only see her parents twice a year. There she fell in love with physics, and eventually traveled to California to study atoms. She made many important discoveries, but was often overlooked as an Asian woman.

This story of the queen of physics is told through collage-style illustrations with lovely hidden touches, such as pearls tiled with atoms on the inside covers. It's an inspiring story for everyone, but especially those looking for female role models in the STEM field. 

The Book Rescuer

The Book Rescuer
by Sue Macy, illustrated by Stacy Innerst
New York: Simon & Schuster, 2019

Aaron Lansky loved books. He got his first library card when he was four years old. Inspired by his grandmother, when he went to college he studied Jewish history. But to read the books written in Yiddish, he had to learn the language. Yiddish speakers and books had been fading away, and Aaron made it his mission to rescue and share as many Yiddish books as he could. His apartment was so full he could barely move around! He started the Yiddish Book Center to share the books and language with people around the world.

This gorgeously illustrated book details Aaron's mission to save a language and literature from being lost forever. It shows the difference that one committed person can make in the world.

Pineapplefish and Lettuce Sea Slugs

I See Sea Food: Sea Creatures That Look Like Food
by Jenna Grodzicki
Minneapolis: Millbrook Press, 2020

Have you ever heard of a banana wrasse? Or a sea apple? These are just some of the strange and wonderful sea creatures featured in I See Sea Food. And they all really do look like food! Each animal gets two pages of photos and information.

This is a fantastic book for anyone with an interest in the undersea world, or who wants to see some really cool photos of sea creatures. There were a number of species I had never heard of, and the book ends with a message that while the whales and sea turtles get all the attention, there's a whole world down there to discover, and the weird creatures in it need love, too.

Bedtime for Sweet Creatures

Bedtime for Sweet Creatures
words by Nikki Grimes, pictures by Elizabeth Zunon
Naperville, Illinois: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, 2020 

It's time for bed, but someone isn't ready. He asks questions like an owl and roars like a lion. He slips out of bed for water like a sly wolf and bounds back in like a gazelle. Will it ever be bedtime for all the creatures?

This gorgeously illustrated book brings to life a menagerie of creatures with a distinctive voice and cadence. Just published in January, it's a fantastic way to start off the year.

STEM Club: Presenting the Polar Bear

February 27 is International Polar Bear Day! The Galesburg Public Library STEM Club will be celebrating this day with our meeting on February 25 with polar bear activities and stories. In the meantime, here are some of my favorite polar bear books for all ages, available for checkout from the library. --Ms. Meghan

Snow Bear
by Jean Craighead George, paintings by Wendell Minor
New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 1999

Bessie Nivyek sets out to explore a huge block of ice that has been pushed up out of the Arctic Ocean overnight. Snow Bear, the polar bear cub, is also exploring. He and Bessie play together while Bessie's brother and Snow Bear's mother watch nervously. Gorgeous paintings bring the Arctic and an unlikely friendship to life.




Knut: how one little polar bear captivated the world
told by Isabella, Juliana, and Craig Hatkoff, and Dr. Gerald R. Uhlich
New York: Scholastic Press, 2007

On December 5, 2006, a polar bear cub was born at Zoo Berlin in Germany. His mother wasn't able to take care of him, and a keeper named Thomas became his foster father. The cub was named Knut and Thomas slept by his side and fed him every two hours around the clock for months until Knut was able to eat on his own. Knut became a worldwide celebrity and inspired people to learn more about wild polar bears and how to help them.

Polar Bears
by Conrad Mason, illustrated by Daniel Howarth
London, Usborne Publishing Ltd., 2009    

Beginning readers will learn all about polar bears in this illustrated book. The chilly world of the Arctic unfolds as you learn about how the bears live, hunt, swim, and grow from tiny cubs to the largest land carnivore on the planet.





Polar Bears
by Dr. Hugh Roome

New York: Scholastic Press, 2018

Great for more advanced readers, this book dives deep into the world of polar bears. It provides a detailed look at their awesome adaptations to the harsh environment, their hunting strategy, how they raise their cubs, and who their closest relatives are.