Technology Nonfiction

Karl is an Abyssinian ground hornbill with a special challenge. His lower bill had broken off and made eating difficult. Karl did a great job of adapting and finding new ways to eat, but he wasn't getting all the food he needed. His zookeepers at the National Zoo and friends at the Smithsonian Institute wanted to help. Could an old bird skeleton and a 3D printer give Karl a new beak? Karl's new adventure was about to begin!

What do you know about jellyfish? Beginning listeners will get their feet wet with these literacy-building introductions to ocean animals.

What do you know about starfish? Beginning listeners will get their feet wet with these literacy-building introductions to ocean animals.

Sloths spend most of their lives in trees, and until recently, scientists didn’t know very much about them. But Dr. Rebecca Cliffe was determined to discover their secrets. To find out more, she fitted sloths with special backpacks containing a device to track their activity. She learned how to climb trees in the Costa Rican jungle so she could take sloth hair samples and test their DNA. And she’s helped create sloth crossings and plant trees to ensure the sloths aren’t trapped in shrinking territories. Along the way, she earned the nickname Dr. Sloth.

On a hot day in the African savannah, a group of elephants searches for food. While foraging they often lose sight of one another. Yet at the end of the day, in one coordinated movement, the elephants suddenly regroup. This coordinated movement - and others like it - has puzzled scientists and caused them to question how elephants communicate with each other. Since the 1990s, scientists have gathered significant data on elephant “talk.”

You're probably familiar with many of the common categories scientists use for animals: warm-blooded or cold-blooded, nocturnal or diurnal. But what about the animals that don't fit in? Sharks cannot be classified as warm or cold-blooded—they are somewhere in-between. And Eurasian eagle owls don't hunt during the day or night. Instead, they swoop through the trees at dawn and dusk. Author and science educator Jessica Fries-Gaither introduces eight common categories scientists use and the animals that break those rules.

Jackals will eat almost anything. On the African savanna, they will even steal food from much bigger animals, like lions. Learn more about the lives of jackals.

Both Thomas Edison and Henry Ford started off as insatiably curious tinkerers. That curiosity led them to become inventors - with very different results. As Edison invented hit after commercial hit, gaining fame and fortune, Henry struggled to make a single invention (an affordable car) work. Witnessing Thomas' glorious career from afar, a frustrated Henry wondered about the secret to his success.

Hibernation is a cycle that some animals go through every year. Most people know that bears hibernate. But why do they hibernate? And what other animals hibernate?

How does an egg become a butterfly? Follow each step in nature's cycle - from egg to brightly colored insect - in this fascinating book!

What does it mean to migrate? Discover which animals migrate and why they migrate through detailed, simple text.

Emma Lilian Todd's mind was always soaring—she loved to solve problems. Lilian tinkered and fiddled with all sorts of objects, turning dreams into useful inventions. As a child, she took apart and reassembled clocks to figure out how they worked. As an adult, typing up patents at the U.S. Patent Office, Lilian built the inventions in her mind, including many designs for flying machines. However, they all seemed too impractical. Lilian knew she could design one that worked.

Beep! Beep! Here comes a dump truck! Young students can learn basic facts about these load-bearing machines through simple text to support listeners who are just starting out.

Owls are one of the world's top predators. These stealthy hunters can fly nearly silently, see long distances, and easily hear prey. Discover the hunting behaviors of owls and see how they train their owlets.

What do you know about rays? Beginning listeners will get their feet wet with these literacy-building introductions to ocean animals.

Butterflies soar in the sunlight. While moths flutter under the moon and stars. Find out more about these mysterious and majestic insects similarities and differences, and their awestriking metamorphosis!

Lions are deadly predators. Their size, keen eyesight, and razor-sharp teeth and claws help them take down prey. Find out how lions hunt, interact with other lions in their pride, and raise their young.

Crocodiles are near the top of the food chain. They have keen senses that make them excellent hunters. Listeners will learn all about them, from how they find prey to how they train their young.

What do you know about clown fish? Beginning listeners will get their feet wet with these literacy-building introductions to ocean animals. In addition to curricular information, social-emotional questions encourage reflection and family/educator engagement tips help connect the topic to the listener's life. These books are sure to make a splash!

Polar bears have amazing strength, teeth, and senses that make them one of nature's best hunters. Readers will learn all about these fierce predators, from their hunting behaviors to how they raise their cubs.