Feature Friday is a new series I’ll be running on Fridays. I have so many great books to tell you about, and they are piling up in my reading room. Unfortunately, there is not enough time in my day to share them all. I’m introducing a new feature on my social media channels, where I’ll share quick video reviews of a few books, including children’s, middle-grade, young adult, and adult fiction and nonfiction.
Clicking the photo of the books or items will take you to their Amazon listing. I may receive a small commission if you purchase through any of my links. Thanks to Eerdmans Books for Young Readers for these children’s books.
It’s migration season, where you might be watching the various birds stopping by your feeders on their way to their winter homes, or maybe you are lucky enough to watch the whales migrating to warmer waters. These books will spark great conversations and maybe an interest in learning more about birds or whales.
CONSIDER THE BIRDS
Consider Series Book 1
By: Jennifer Grant
Illustrated by: Julianna Swaney
Published: August 5, 2025
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Fiction
The first book in a new series that celebrates birds, nature, and God’s love for all of His special creatures introduces children to the birds that may visit their backyard feeders. You’ll count to five as the various birds visit the feeders from one bossy bluejay to four wrens and a cardinal. A nearby squirrel also tries to access the seed in the feeder…much like in my backyard.
The illustrations are beautiful. Swaney has illustrated Joanna Gaines’s children’s books as well. The lyrical writing is also based on Matthew 6:26 and reminds children that God loves the birds as much as he loves them.
Jennifer Grant is an award-winning author of books for children and adults, including Finding Calm in Nature, Maybe God Is Like That Too, and Maybe I Can Love My Neighbor Too (all Beaming). Consider the Birds was shaped by the many hours she spent with her (now-grown) children watching their backyard birdfeeder. She lives in Chicago. Visit her website at jennifergrant.com.
Julianna Swaney is the illustrator of over a dozen books, including I Will Dance (Atheneum) and the #1 New York Times bestsellers The World Needs Who You Were Made to Be and We Are the Gardeners (Thomas Nelson). She lives in Portland, Oregon, in a craftsman bungalow where she enjoys breadmaking, gardening, and carving the occasional wooden spoon. Visit her website at juliannaswaney.com.
Click HERE to purchase CONSIDER THE BIRDS
JOURNEY OF THE HUMPBACKS
By: Juliana Muñoz Toro
Illustrated by: Dipacho
Translated by: Lawrence Schimel
Published: September 26, 2025
Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Non-Fiction
Whales are ready to head to warmer waters. While they are migrating, readers will learn various facts about humpback whales as well as other whales. Created in collaboration with whale scientists and researchers, this book is perfect for kids who want to know all about humpback whales.
Bite-sized facts and beautiful illustrations focus on the area near Columbia, where the author is from, and the site of many migrating whales. Maps of their migration, combined with life cycle illustrations, the birth of a baby whale, and even what happens when a whale dies, make this a fascinating look at the life of a humpback whale.
This book is part of the Spectacular STEAM for Curious Readers series.
Juliana Muñoz Toro is a writer and story embroiderer based in Bogotá, Colombia. The Humpbacks’ Journey, her English-language debut, was the winner of the 2021 Banco del Libro Award in the Informative Books category, and it was also selected for the “Reading Colombia” catalog in 2022. Visit Juliana’s blog at julianamunoztoro.wordpress.com.
Dipacho (the pseudonym of Diego Francisco Sanchez Rodriguez) is the award-winning illustrator of many books for children, including Some Do, Some Don’t and Antonia: A Journey to a New Home. His titles have been published across Latin America as well as in Italy, Portugal, and France. Dipacho lives in Colombia. Visit his website at dipacho.com.
Lawrence Schimel has written or translated over 300 books, including Niños, 9 Kilometers, and the Batchelder Honor book Different (all Eerdmans). His works have received many awards, including a PEN Translates Award, two SCBWI Crystal Kite Awards, and two Américas Award Honors. Lawrence lives in Madrid, Spain.
Click HERE to purchase JOURNEY OF THE HUMPBACKS
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Posted Under Book Review, Children's books, Christian, Dipacho, Humpback Whales, Jennifer Grant, Juliana Muńoz Toro, Julianna Swaney, Lawrence Schimel, Migration, STEM, birds, counting, fiction, non-fiction, science