Secrets of the Garden: Food Chains and the Food Web in Our Background

by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld, Priscilla Lamont (Illustrator)

Overview

Perfect for Earth Day and spring planting season--an outstanding book about backyard science the whole family will appreciate.

Alice's family plants a vegetable garden each spring, and this budding naturalist reports all she sees about how the plants grow, what insects come to eat the plants, and what birds and animals come to eat the insects.  It's the food chain, right in her own backyard!

While Alice's narrative is simple and engaging, science concepts are presented in more depth in sidebars by a pair of very knowledgeable (and highly amusing) chickens! Noted science writer Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld knows how to layer information to make it accessible to a wide range of readers and useful for educators. And illustrator Priscilla Lamont's funny, friendly paintings make this a garden everyone will want to explore.

Kids will eat up this wonderful book of backyard science—and perhaps they'll even be inspired to eat their vegetables!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780375987304
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	02/28/2012
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	40
Lexile:	AD610L (what's this?)
File size:	39 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	5 - 9 Years

About the Author

KATHLEEN WEIDNER ZOEHFELD was a children's book editor for more than 10 years before becoming a full-time writer. She has published more than 60 books for children, most about animals and natural history.

PRISCILLA LAMONT has illustrated dozens of books, including the Animal Rescue Team books by Sue Stauffacher, and Goose and Duck by Jean Craighead George. Whether drawing human or animal characters, Priscilla always likes to include some humor.

Editorial Reviews

Starred Review, School Library Journal, February 1, 2012:
“The book will raise readers’ awareness of backyard food chains and encourage some students to try gardening themselves.”

Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews, November 15, 2011:
"Zoehfeld’s latest is a wonderfully informative and enjoyable journey through one family’s backyard garden, from spring planting to fall harvest. Covering a dazzling array of topics, the author still manages to hold onto a story line that will draw readers in and allow them to experience both the good and the bad right along with narrator Alice. Sure to become a standard go-to for elementary teachers and gardeners alike, this is bound to spark some backyard explorations."

Booklist, March 15, 2012:
"A natural for young gardeners, this picture book is also an appealing addition to classroom units on food chains."

Publishers Weekly, January 9, 2012:
"Filled with humorous, cozy, and informative details. This intimate portrait of a single garden points to how all ecosystems are connected."

From the Publisher