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On the Origin of Species -- Perfect Picture Book Friday


Title: Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species

Adapted and Illustrated by: Sabina Radeva

Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers, 2019


Themes: Evolution, Charles Darwin, Observation, Naturalist


For Ages: K and up


Opening Page: A long long time ago, before humans existed, the living world looked very different from how it looks today. Since life on Earth began, tiny organisms, plants and animals have been changing slowly, over millions of years, because of a process called evolution.


If you have ever thought you should read Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, this is a great place to start. Darwin's paper was written in 1858. As scientists continue to do research and build on or fine tune the understanding of the concepts Darin shared, some of his information has become outdated. Sabina points out these differences in the appendix of the book.


This is a simplified version of Darwin's paper and even it is complex. He covered so much ground and each concept unfolds to the next one. I am fascinated by the all of the information.


I remember learning in high school about dominant and recessive traits. As a red head with blue eyes, this tidbit stuck with me as they are recessive features and require parents to have red hair and blue eyes in their genes. They said that both parent must have blue eyes to have a blue eyed child. That science has even changed since I was in high school. The study of DNA is quite new and understanding it is a growing changing thing. But that moment when I could connect me to understanding our bodies has made me curious to understand more.


I love this about science and understanding our world. What we understand changes and grows the more we look at it. It deepens as new technologies allow us to study and understand the minutest of details.


The end pages include illustrations of many insects. There is a note on the copyright page that you can find these insects throughout the book.


Activities and Resources:


Hear from the author and illustrator about the book and learn how to draw a leopard with her.



This is the companion coloring book:


For more great activities to spark creativity, imagination, and thinking, check out Jarrett Lerner's website. They aren't directly related to this book, but his stuff is too good to miss. He recently added several Earth Day Activities.


There is a ton of cool stuff coming up at the Society of Illustrators, including a Saturday story and art activity with Mika Song who wrote Donut Feed the Squirrels.


You can find this book at Amazon, Bookshop.org, your local independent book store, or your library.

(The links are affiliate links. I'm not in this for the money, just trying to get you the quickest way to get the book for your kids, your library, or your school classroom. At Bookshop.org, I have several booklists which include my Perfect Picture Book Friday picks and my Graphic novel picks. I just started a Middle Grade Novel list, and an Adult Book List.)


Check out Susanna Hill's Perfect Picture Book Friday Blog to discover more cool books to read with your kids and add to your collection.

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