Great Nonfiction Picture Books

Trying to get your child interested in nonfiction, then checkout these great works of nonfiction that read like picture books.

Animals

The buffalo are back by Jean Craighead George

This is the story of an iconic American symbol on the brink of extinction making a comeback.  The buffalo of the prairie were nearly extinct by 1900. The prairie was in trouble and the buffalo were the key.  This picture book moves from the Plain Indians to Teddy Roosevelt, to the nature preserves that are now protected, showing over time how the buffalo returned.

 

Looking for Miza: the true story of an orphaned baby gorilla by Craig Hatkoff

Using photos to guide the story forward, this is a story about a baby gorilla, who loses his mother.  Left alone in the jungle of the Congo, Miza is taken in by a family of mountain gorillas and raised as a member of their family.

 

Mrs. Harkness and the panda by Alicia Potter

 

In 1934, not many people around the world had seen a panda before.  Ruth Harkness’s husband set out to capture a panda in China and return to NYC with the panda.  After several month of exploring William Harkness died unsuccessfully in China.  After his death Ruth packed her bags, traveled to China to complete her husband’s mission.  Ruth did what extremely few women of her time had done.  She traveled half way around the world, organized an expedition, and tracked a panda.

 

Nubs: the true story of a mutt, a Marine, and a miracle by Brian Dennis

Nubs was a wild dog living in the dessert of Iraq barely surviving off the land when he met Marine Major Brian Dennis.  The two formed a connection and Nubs became part of Dennis’s pack.  Then Dennis was relocated over 70 miles away.  Nubs over the next two days treks across the desert to find Dennis.

 

Owen & Mzee: the true story of a remarkable friendship by Isabella Hatkoff

Owen, a baby hippo was separated from his family during a tsunami in Southeast Asia.  After being rescued by villagers, from the sea, he was transported to an animal sanctuary, where he met Mzee, a 130-year-old giant tortoise.  Owen quickly attached to Mzee and treated Mzee like a mother, relying on Mzee for safety and companionship.  This book documents Owens rescue and relationship with Mzee.

 

Stay: the true story of ten dogs by Michaela Muntean

Luciano, an acrobat in the circus has a serious accident and is told by his doctor that he will never be able to perform as an acrobat again.  Luciano refused to give up his life as a performer and begins to piece together a new act, involving performing dogs.  But instead of getting dogs from a breeder, he decides to rescue the dogs that no one wants and give them a second chance, like the second chance he is getting.  Stay tells the story of the ten dogs that Luciano rescued and the success they all experienced. 

 

Tarra and Bella: the elephant and dog who became best friends
by Carol Buckley

Tarra, a circus elephant retires from performing and moves to the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. There she meets many other elephants but is unable to form a bond of friendship with the other elephants that come to the sanctuary. Then one day a stray dog named Bella wanders into the sanctuary and befriends Tarra. The two become inseparable. Even when their friendship is tested they remain by each other’s’ sides.  

 

 

Thumbelina: the world's smallest horse by Heather C. Hadak

 

Thumbelina is the world’s smallest horse, but she gives hope and love to everyone she meets.  Just because she is small, does not mean she cannot make a big difference in people’s lives.  This is a fun and inspiring story that shows that size does not matter.

 

Winter's tail by Juliana Hatkoff

When Winter, the bottlenose dolphin was a baby she was rescued off the coast of Florida.  Her tail had been seriously damaged by a crab trap.  To everyone’s surprise, Winter survived her injuries, even though she lost her tail.  Without a tail she had to change how she moved in the water, causing damage to her spine.  With the help of a team of experts Winter was provided a new prosthetic tail.  This book tracks Winter’s story from her rescue through her recovery.     

 

History

 

14 cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy

Nine months after the September 11 attacks, the Maasai people of western Kenya, offered a gift of 14 cows to the American ambassador, to provide hope and kindness for the future,  to grieving and heartbroken Americans.

 

All stations! Distress!: April 15, 1912, the day the Titanic sank by Don Brown 

This retelling of the Titanic story begins with basic facts about the building of the ship, and the excitement of the launch.  The story then follows different classes of passengers on their trip, eventually leading up to the sinking of the ship. 

 

Camping trip that changed America by Barb Rosenstock

In 1903, John Muir invited President Teddy Roosevelt on a camping trip through the California wilderness.  John Muir feared that if this beautiful wilderness was not protected it would be destroyed.  From this camping trip the movement for the creation of National Parks evolved.  Discover what happened during this camping trip that motivated Teddy Roosevelt to campaign and eventually create national parks like Yellowstone.

 

 

How the sphinx got to the museum by Jessie Hartland

This book presents us with the history of the Hatshepsut sphinx, and how it got here to New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.  From its carving in ancient Egypt to its arrival in the museum, this is a fascinating journey of how information is preserved and displayed.

 

Worst friends by Suzanne Jurmain

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson had a falling out that spanned their two presidencies and long into their retirement.  This book provides a brief overview of their relationship, their differences, and their passion to better American government.

Science

 

Energy Island by Allan Drummond

Energy Island is an inspiring story about making a big difference in the world. This story shows how an ordinary community on an island in Denmark made an extraordinary decisions to change how they used energy.  The island of Samsᴓ harnessed the wind to create enough energy to become almost completely energy-independent.

 

How the dinosaur got to the museum by Jessie Hatland

This is the story of how a dinosaur named Diplodocus made its way from Utah to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.  This is an interesting story that shows the care and maintenance required in keeping ancient artifacts intact, so that we may visit them at the museum and learn more about the past.

 

Listen to the wind by Greg Mortenson

Greg Mortenson was lost in a remote Himalayan village, and saved by the local people.  After he was saved by these villages he promised to return the kindness that was given to him, and he vowed to build a school.  In keeping his promise he enhanced the lives of many people in a distant part of the world.  Through collage type images and simple narrative text, this is a great and remarkable story to read aloud.

 

 

Olivia's birds: saving the Gulf by Olivia Bouler

Animals often need help and protection, but do not always get it.  Olivia is an 11 year old girl who made a great and remarkable difference in the Gulf Coast oil spill recovery mission.  She not only raised awareness, but a great deal of money in order to save helpless animals from this disaster.  Full of hand drawn pictures by Olivia, readers get a true sense of Olivia and her eagerness to help the birds.

 

 

Pop!: the invention of bubble gum by Meghan McCarthy

 

This is a fun book for gum lovers.   It begins with the history of gum and candy making and goes into interesting and fun facts all about gum.  The pink bubbles and sweet looking images make this informative book a lot of fun to read. 

 

Redwoods by Jason Chin

 

The story begins with an average train ride that transforms into an imaginative and informative adventure. Jason stumbles upon a book about Redwood forests, and while he continues to uncover more information about these natural wonders, he is transported to California to climb the Redwood canopy. 

Sports

 

Hoop genius: how a desperate teacher and a rowdy gym class invented basketball by John Coy

 

This is a true story of how a gym teacher created the game of basketball, in an effort to tame a wild gym class and how the game traveled across the country and evolved into the game we love today.

 

The longest season: the story of the Orioles' 1988 losing streak

 

Cal Ripkin, Jr.  loved playing baseball for the Baltimore Orioles, but their record breaking 21-game losing streak was devastating.  Throughout this book it shows the ups and downs of the Orioles team, and how their hard work eventually paid off.

 

 

For the entire list of nonfiction picture books available at the North Castle Library, stop by the Children's Room or send us an email by clicking the icon in the top right hand corner.