Welcome to this week's Non-fiction Monday Round-up, featuring bird calls and more!

The Non-fiction Monday Round-up is here today! Please leave your Non-fiction Monday link in the comments, and I'll put them in here!

Reading about the perils of batteries in children's books reminded me of the one battery operated book that my boys and I have loved for the past seven years. It's a book that I bring out every spring, when (some of us) are awoken early in the mornings by the joyous cacophony outside--Bird Calls, by Frank Gallo (2001, Innovative Kids--still in print). Eight birds are featured in double spreads, mostly ones that we have in our garden, or in the swamp nearby--cardinals, chickadees, red-wing blackbirds... (although, strangely, our eastern woodlands are not teeming with killdeers). The initial text gives clues about that page's bird, then you press a button to hear its song, pull a tab that slides open the habitat to revel the bird, and lift the text flap to read more.

It has actually worked very well--I was ever so pleased when my youngest, just turned three, identified red-wing blackbirds from sound alone! A most excellent book for parents like me who want their children to be as familiar with their backyards as they are with their lego sets.

(I just tried to see if I could find and swallow the battery. I couldn't, but then, I am bad with batteries. I had to get my husband to help the first time the wireless mouse needed new ones).

And for their birdwatching grandma, we bought Bird Songs: 250 North American Birds In Song, by Les Beletski. It doesn't have the flaps or the tabs, but it does sit on her coffee table, and every visit the boys enjoy finding the birds they know, and listening to new ones.

(dragging this post on-topic for my blog--I am trying to think of any bird-watching characters in fantasy or science fiction. I can't).

TODAY'S ROUND-UP:

Sarah at In Need of Chocolate brings us African Animals, by Caroline Arnold.

Laura Salas shares that she'll be signing her books A Is for Arrr! A Pirate Alphabet, and Fuzzy-Fast Blur: Poems About Pets at ALA in Washington D.C., and also has news of a new version of her writing class for nonfiction writing.

Abby (the) Librarian has 882 1/2 Amazing Answers to Your Questions About the Titanic by Hugh Brewer and Laurie Coulter.

At TheHappyNappyBookseller, Doret looks at a favorite of mine--Seeds of Change, a biography of Wangari Maathai by Jen Cullerton Johnson and Sonia Lynn Sadler.

The Wild About Nature blog features April Pulley Sayre's Turtle, Turtle, Watch Out!

At Madigan Reads is a look at The Wimpy Kid Movie Diary, by Jeff Kinney.

Jennifer at the Jean Little Library presents 4 gardening books for kids--it's great to hear that they are in high demand at her library!

In honor of the start of hurricane season (and please oh please may they come late and seldom this year) Shirley at Simply Science has Hurricanes, by Mari Schuh.

Wendie Old at Wendie's Wanderings talks about The Smash! Smash! Truck, Recycling as You've Never Heard it Before.

The Man Who Flies with Birds is reviewed by Marie at The Association of Jewish Libraries.

Moms Inspire Learning is featuring One Well: The Story of Water on Earth, by Rochelle Strauss.

Here's a concept book by Andrew Clements --The Handiest Things in the World--at NC Teacher Stuff (it's about hands)

Rasco from RIF looks at SIT IN: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down.

Anastasia is in in with a great dinosaur book, Born to Be Giants, at Picture Book of the Day.

And at Blog from the Windowsill you can fine more dino fun, with Dinosaurs by Lila Prap.

Finally, Three Turtles and their Pet Librarian take a look at the Cool Crafts recycling series from Capstone.

Thanks for stopping by! Next week's Non-fiction Monday will be at Books Together.