Chopsticks Are by Chloe Ito Ward, illustrated by Lynn Scurfield

• Publisher: Chronicle Books
• Publication Date: March 31, 2026
• Reviewed from Edelweiss e-galley
• ISBN: 9781797227368

This nonfiction picture book celebrates the humble chopstick. Immediately some readers will be shocked to see chopsticks used for cooking as well as for eating. The book explores the various shapes of chopsticks from around the world and how they are used with different cuisines. Traditions around chopsticks are also shared around celebrations, offerings and luck. 

The book ends with an Author’s Note and more detailed information about how chopsticks were invented and additional rules around their use. The text is inviting, feeling like you are being invited to share a meal and learn along the way. The illustrations are bright and friendly, filled with colors, food and people. 

A yummy and inviting look at chopsticks. Appropriate for ages 3-6.

Mary Morland in the Time of Dinosaur Discovery by Jane Kurtz, illustrated by Giselle Porter

• Publisher: Beach Lane Books
• Publication Date: February 24, 2026
• Reviewed from Edelweiss e-galley
• ISBN: 9781665955546

When Mary Morland was a little girl, she was expected to be prim and proper. But she preferred to be outside. After her mother died, she was sent to stay with friends who had no children. The man of the family was a professor who encouraged her study of nature. As a teen, she exchanged letters with a famous French scientist who studied fossils. Rather than search for a husband, she found hers because she was reading the same thick book by that scientist. The two loved fossils and spent their lives together researching and traveling. She raised children to also be curious and learn, ignoring how clean her house was. She was a scientist her entire life, dedicating her studies to fossils and newly discovered dinosaurs. 

Written as a series of questions and answers, this picture book biography is engaging from the very beginning. The format allows readers to quickly understand how unique Morland was during her life and how she didn’t pay attention to what society might want a lady to and followed her own path. The watercolor illustrations show the fossils and shells that Mary studied as well as her throughout her life out in nature and learning. 

A grand biography of an unconventional life well lived. Appropriate for ages 6-10.

When Twilight Comes: The Animals and Plants That Bring Dawn and Dusk to Life by Marcie Flinchum Atkins, illustrated by Michelle Morin

• Publisher: Chronicle Books
• Publication Date: March 31, 2026
• Reviewed from Edelweiss e-galley
• ISBN:9781797216799

Exploring the twilight parts of the day starts with dawn when darkness is going away. Squash bees visit the garden before other bees are up and moving. The skunk and her kits head home. Hummingbirds visit morning glory flowers as they open. Tired animals head to their dens to sleep the day away. Dusk arrives and bird calls like the whippoorwill’s fill the forest. Deer scavenge for berries, bats leave their roosts and hunt insects. Fireflies flash, evening primroses open and moths come to visit them. Rabbits eat in the garden, watching for foxes. 

The book ends with more information on twilight as well as the creatures that come out during the time. A bibliography completes the end pages. The poetic presentation of information captures the beauty and unique qualities of these transitory times between night and day. Readers are sure to learn about plants and animals they didn’t realize were active during these times of day. The illustrations show the quality of light as it changes from yellows of day to pinks to blues and then to the purples before night falls. 

A lovely look at twilight sure to have children wanting to explore this time of day and night themselves. Appropriate for ages 4-8.