Fans pick 100 books like A Seed Is Sleepy

Full disclosure, I worked on this book as an editor. But it’s because of that experience that I know how hard the author/photographer and scientist consultant worked to tell this story in a way that was clear and fun for kids! I love reading it to my children and frequently give it as a winter-themed gift. I love the beautiful, through-the-microscope photos of the crystal shapes. I also like how the book clarifies the difference between snowflakes and snow crystals, since we very often refer to snow crystals as “snowflakes” – but they are too small for the eye to see from a distance unless they are clumped together. (The clumps are the “snowflakes.”) Such a fun winter read, and a great non-holiday-themed addition to any family’s winter book collection.

I love the colorful illustrations and the silliness of Dr. Seuss books. This book delivers a positive message about our natural resources in a way all can understand. The message is taking responsibility for the problems we create. The seed represents hope for the future.

When I was a child, I went to see an outdoor screening of The Lorax at a local festival. I won a copy of the book and it’s been special to me ever since. I think it reinforced the idea that no matter how old you are, you can change things for the better. I also wanted to share something positive through my books.

I use color in the illustrations in my books because when I was a kid, I loved picture books and they were helpful when I was having difficulty with my learning disabilities and how others perceived me. I was ten years… show more.

I didn’t want to leave older children out of this list. This book would make a fantastic gift for a child who loves science but considers themselves “too old” for picture books. This beautifully illustrated chapter book features children who followed their curiosities and questions to real discoveries that helped the world! A very inspiring read.

For the oldest kids, I find this whole Worst-Case Scenario series to be so excellent! This one was developed with an expert consultant on Martian exploration, so it takes kids through the real choices they would have to make if they traveled to Mars. There is nothing like being in the driver’s seat, making life or death choices, to help someone really learn about a subject. This book will have them so stepped in Mars as they read, their fingertips will be covered in red dust! Well, almost!

This author is well known for her nonfiction picture books that clearly explain science topics, in this case, the growth of plants. Step by step, Gibbons walks young readers through pollination, the growth of seeds, and how seeds are distributed, such as by squirrels and birds. Then she goes on to talk about how plants grow. The whole process is reader-friendly, and the illustrations are clean and attractive. A great introduction for kindergarten through third graders.

I worked with Sue in the 1980s and came to appreciate her dedication to organic gardening and understanding plants. We then lost touch and it was a great pleasure to come across this book 15 years ago. Although it's over 30 years old, nature does not change and she gives beautiful clear descriptions of how to go about saving seeds from all different types of vegetables. It's neither straightforward nor is it difficult, and you are in good hands with Sue who will help you to succeed in this vital task, more valuable now than ever before. We all need the seeds of health!

Gathering: Memoir of a Seed Saver is a heartwarming story about the heirloom seed movement in America, charmingly told, with evocative details, by one of its prime movers. In 1975, Diane Ott Whealy, co-founded the Seed Savers Exchange (SSE), the nation’s premier non-profit seed-saving organization, with a gift of seeds passed down from her beloved paternal grandparents. The story goes from there. That heirloom fruits and vegetables are now ubiquitous in gardens and on kitchen and restaurant tables across the land, owes much to the dedication of Diane and her former husband, the SSE board, staff, membership, and supporters.

What Diane helped create is about a big idea: collecting, growing, and sharing heirloom seeds and plants to promote their conservation. Get the inside scoop in Gathering. I owe my own evolution as a gardener and advocate to my affiliation with SSE over the past 30 years. 

A heartwarming book with a hilarious premise. Grub, a raccoon, meets Seed (a seed) in the same garbage can one night. Grub, who’s been dreaming of finding one, asks Seed, “Are you a cheeseburger?” Seed is unsure and asks what a cheeseburger is. “Something very good and very special,” says Grub. Unsure, Seed replies, “We will just have to wait and see.” While they wait, Grub describes the 3 best cheeseburgers ever and Seed describes 3 wonderful worms. When Seed eventually sprouts, they celebrate: Grub plays banjo and Seed secretly wonders what will happen if she isn’t actually a cheeseburger. 

The illustrations of this book are simple and magical. Like me, you may find the ending to be “something very good and very special” too. 

Nancy Castaldo and I are on the same wavelength when it comes to connecting kids and teens to the environment. In The Story of Seeds, she says, “It may sound crazy, even improbable, but there are scientists who are risking their lives every day for seeds. It’s true, and they’ve been doing it for years.” I love her conversational style and the narrative arc of this book. A must-read for teens who like to get their hands dirty.

Perfect for ages 12 and up.

This joyful book about the life cycle of a dandelion will have you on the edge of your seat!

I’m not kidding – suspense and humor pervade the tale, which takes our dandelion from an unlikely sprouting in a city sidewalk to adventures and tragedy in the countryside (being trampled by a moose!), to the ecstasy and triumph of a final scattering of its millions of little seeds.

What child hasn’t blown on the fluffy ball of dandelion seeds? Understanding where the seeds come from and where they’re going is a life lesson worth learning about this special indigenous plant too often dismissed as a “weed.”

Barbara Chotiner’s chaotic and evocative illustrations will bear up under many repeated readings.