My little boy is obsessed with skeletons. He's not that interested in dinosaurs, but he loves their bones. He thinks pirates are pretty cool, as long as they are pirate skeletons. We spend a lot of time seeking out any and all depictions of skeletons, whether they be unseasonably Halloween-ish, medical, or just a loose femur rattling around somewhere. If you too have a budding osteopathologist in your household, check out these books about bones!
Written by Cary Fagan
Illustrated by Dasha Tolstikova
Toronto; Berkeley: Groundwood Books : House of Anansi Press, 2022. Picture Book.
A thoughtful little girl finds a bone in the forest and takes it home with her. She cleans it, cares for it, and plays with it until she has a sudden sense of melancholy about the unknown creature who died and left a piece of itself behind. She buries the bone in the earth again. Boney explores nature, stewardship, interconnectedness, and mortality. I was surprised that my young son seemed to grasp these ideas through this simple, open-ended story.
By Chihiro Takeuchi
Somerville, MA: Candlewick Studio. 2022. Picture Book.
This interesting picture book doubles as a guessing game. One page shows the bones of an animal, delicately cut out of white paper and scattered on a boldly colored background. When you turn the page you find the bones configured into a skeleton, and then a complete image of the creature in question. The stylized anatomy is a fun way to look at this scientific topic.
Written by Kim Norman
Illustrated by Bob Kolar
Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press, 2019. Picture Book.
I don't always like rhyming picture books, but this one really works for me. The skeleton of an old sea captain, scattered underwater and accompanied by sea creatures, pieces himself back together. Part pirate, part anatomical, it's funny, smart, morbid, and jaunty.
Written by Jan Paul Schutten
Photography by Arie van't Riet
Translated by Laurie Watkinson
Vancouver, BC: Greyston Kids, 2021. Informational. 127 pages.
Amazing x-ray photography of animals, insects, and plants shows what's hidden beneath the surface. And luckily for my kid, that means skeletons galore. This is an exquisite informational book that would easily scale to children of all ages.
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