Celebrate The Great Outdoors: Five Books for Nature Lovers

Kids love to explore outdoors and if there’s also the possibility of finding a small creature, nest or interesting flower then there’s no stopping them. If there are a few too many questions for you to answer about beetles, butterflies and trees, point them in the direction of a good book. Here are a few to get your nature lover started.

I Am the Seed That Grew the Tree: A Poem for Every Day of the Year by Fiona Waters

I Am the Seed That Grew the Tree, named after the first line of Judith Nicholls’ poem ‘Windsong’, is a lavishly illustrated collection of 366 nature poems – one for every day of the year, including leap years.

Filled with familiar favourites and new discoveries, written by a wide variety of poets, including John Agard, William Blake, Emily Bronte, Charles Causley, Walter de la Mare, Emily Dickinson, Carol Ann Duffy, Eleanor Farjeon, Robert Frost, Thomas Hardy, Roger McGough, Christina Rossetti, William Shakespeare, John Updike, William Wordsworth and many more, this is the perfect book for children (and grown-ups!) to share at the beginning or the end of the day, or just to dip into.

Bonkers About Beetles by Owen Davey

Did you know that there are roughly 400,000 different species of beetles? These incredible creatures make up about 25% of all animals on our planet! Beetles are superbly adapted to life in various climates across the world, wherever trees and flowers are found.

From the mighty Goliath beetle to the beautiful iridescent scarab beetle, this captivating and stunningly illustrated guide will teach you everything you need to know about these fascinating insects.

Secret World of Butterflies by Courtney Sina Meredith

Butterflies are beautiful but they have some very odd habits – welcome to their secret world.

Did you know that butterflies taste with their feet, do a dark red poo when they come out of their chrysalises and that some drink the tears of crocodiles?

How does the world look to them, do they ever sleep and how are some of them able to fly so high?

This book will open your eyes to these magical creatures around us.

Plantopedia by Adrienne Barman

Welcome to this collection of amazing plants from all over the world, chosen for their unique traits and characteristics, with fun illustrations by Adrienne Barman. Meet the evergreens, the edibles and the elderly plants that have outlived the dinosaurs in this alphabetically-ordered encyclopedia. Filled with fascinating flowers, curious crops and wonderful weeds, this book will keep young explorers busy for hours. A fantastic follow-up to smash-hit Creaturepedia.

Under the Canopy: Trees Around the World by Iris Volant

Young readers will be fascinated by tales of trees from across the world, fully illustrated in Cynthia Alonso’s fresh, vibrant style.

Beyond their environmental significance, this gorgeously illustrated book explores the cultural significance that trees have in different societies. From the olive trees of Athens to the Eucalyptus trees of Australia, discover the place of trees in history and mythology across the world.