Gravity and Music Everywhere!

Gravity, written and illustrated by Jason Chin.  Yet another winner from the enormously talented Chin (Redwoods, Island).  Using easy to understand, pared down prose, this concise, striking exploration of how gravity works soars thanks to his innovative and meta approach.  The book Gravity falls from the sky (I'm talking the actual book Gravity by Jason Chin), startling a boy playing with outer space toys on a beach.  He then experiences a world without gravity as everything floats away.  But fear not:  gravity prevails and order is restored.  Repeat readings reveal how clever innovative this book truly is; readers will discover cool details in the art that they did not notice before.  Easy non-fiction at its very best.


Music Everywhere!, by Maya Ajmera, Elise Hofer Derstine, and Cynthia Pon. 
Packed with photographs from all over the world, this uplifting work (part of the Global Fund for Children Book series) shows children dancing, singing, clapping hands, stomping feet, and, most impressively, playing a wide variety of cool-looking instruments.  A little Scottish kid plays the bagpipes, while girls in China strum the yueqin, for example.  Captions accompany the vibrant, colorful photos showing wildly enthusiastic children.  From Malawi to the Cook Islands, from Belgium to Brazil, the book takes readers on a whirlwind, epic tour.