You are 25% Banana by Susie Brooks illustrated by Josy Bloggs

All living things have "built-in recipes called genes." If you compare the genetic makeup of various things you will discover some surprising things expressed in this book as percentages such as the title of this book - you are 25% banana. Twenty-five percent is one quarter. This might shock a couple of my friends who do not like to eat bananas!

Genes are your recipe. I have my mum's blue eyes and her small feet and hands. I have light coloured hair from my dad. I know another dad with a chin dimple - it is a trademark for their family handed on to his daughter and grandson. I think talking with your library group or young reading companion about the 'traits' they can match with their own mum or dad would be the way I would introduce this book. I would also quickly display two important words - genes and jeans - just to make sure before reading that there is no confusion about the topic!

Have you heard of bossy genes? This explains why more humans have brown eyes than blue and why there are so few white tigers with blue eyes. I loved the discovery that size and genes are not related. For example this book explains that a tiny grain of rice has 36,000 genes, an apple has 56,000 and a sunflower has 52,000. Bamboo (32,000) even has more genes than the panda (21,000) who eats it.

Then there is the idea the humans have genes in common with some animals - we share genes for singing with songbirds and parrots; we share tooth growing with sharks (even though we only grow two sets); and we share our brainy genes with dolphins. But we are also related to dogs, daffodils and dung beetles. Oh, and also fruit flies which is why they were sent into space. with a group of older students this might be the opportunity to talk about why or even rise the issue of the ethics of using mice in science experiments designed to test things designed for use with humans such as medicines. 

I was pleased to read we are 80% like cows because I love cows and milk and I was not surprised to discover chimps are 99% like us. And if you have identical twins in your class that will open up another amazing topic. 

"You're 99.9% identical to every other person in the whole world. Nearly all your genes are like everyone else's. Just one in every thousand recipes in your recipe book is different enough to make you ... YOU!"

WOW! This is a book for young children about genetics. I listened to the Teacher-Librarian reading this in the library where I work as a volunteer and I was so intrigued.

Bookseller blurb: A brilliantly funny first guide to genetics that is perfect for children aged 5 years and over. This stunningly illustrated book will boggle your brain with astonishing facts, as it shows how we’re all related to every living thing on the planet. Did you know that a grain of rice has more genes than you? Or that you’re related to dogs, dung beetles and even daffodils? Luckily, even though you’re 99.9% like a chimpanzee, you’re still 100% YOU! The extraordinary world of genetics has never been explained so simply. You’ll be amazed at what makes you YOU.

In your library you will find other books about genes and genetics at [576.5]. Take a look at this post from my friend at Kinderbookswitheverything about World DNA Day 25th April. 

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Using both bold fonts and illustrations, this is a fascinating early introduction to genetics that explains how humans are related to every other living thing on the planet, including bananas; that our closest relatives are chimpanzees with a 99% match; yet while our “recipe” is the same as 99.9% of everyone else on the planet now or ever, it is the 0.1% that makes us unique.  Only identical twins have the same recipe! The Bottom Shelf

This masterful look at genes and genetics for young readers had me hooked from page one, and there are many active minds out there waiting for information that is relevant, informative, funny and engaging. Illustrations in bright bold colours inform and intrigue as does the layout of each page, drawing the eye to take another look before the pages are turned. ReadPlus

I am not a fan of the NSW Premiers Reading Challenge but you might like to know that this is a PRC 3-4 title [886461].

Here is the webpage for the illustrator Josy Bloggs. Susie Brooks is the author of these art books:

Elements of the Day by Samantha Lewis Illustrated by Hao Hao

Reading this book is sure to help you when you are watching a quiz show and they ask about elements of the periodic table. No need to memorize all of them - I am sure a few will stick in your mind and in the mind of your curious science-minded child after reading this terrific book. 

You can see lots of pages inside this book here

Since I left my school library I haven't spent much time browsing the nonfiction section of bookshops - specifically the nonfiction children's section but a couple of weeks ago I spent some time at Gleebooks and I found some real treasures. I have already talked about Soup's On, The Anthology of Shells and How to Survive an Apocalypse. Elements of the Day is another of these discoveries. I would love to put this into a school library - it is an absolutely perfect book that makes sense of a complex topic in a unique way. I did have a few books in my former school library about the periodic table, and I did have some curious science kids who borrowed them - this title would have been a great addition to that shelf [546.8]. BONUS this book is only AUS$19.99!

Here is the web page for the author Samantha Lewis. And here is the Instagram page for the Chinese illustrator Hao Hao. 

Publisher blurb: The amazing stories and fascinating facts behind the elements that make every moment of the day possible. Why is breakfast cereal magnetic? Could you turn wee into gold? How does sand help us see? The answers have one thing in common – ELEMENTS! Elements are the building blocks that make up EVERYTHING we see, touch and taste. You’ll be amazed at how many there are to explore from the moment you wake up to the second you drift off to sleep (no matter how long past your bedtime it is!). Inside everything from cereal, cars and cakes to toilet paper, pencils and torches – come and meet the extraordinary elements that make YOUR day!

It’s a unique approach to teaching even our younger students about chemistry because, rather than being a lot of easily-forgotten facts, it connects the information to their world, both engaging them as they read and showing them the relevance of what they are learning. The Bottom Shelf

Here are a couple of other books you might find on the periodic table for kids:

The companion volume to Elements of the Day - Forces of the Day will be published later in 2026.

The Other Ducks by Ellen Yeomans illustrated by Chris Sheban

"Two is not a line. Two is a follow. A line is more ducky."

Blurb: This Duck and That Duck are inseparable, but they long for more friends to waddle with. When they discover The Other Ducks beneath the water, their excitement turns to frustration as these new companions refuse to leave the pond. With winter approaching and their feathers itching for warmth, will This Duck and That Duck find a way to bring The Other Ducks into their world? Dive into this charming tale of friendship and discovery as these ducks navigate the challenges of expanding their circle.

The two ducks in this story, male and female, are so naive about the world (something your young reading companion will both relate to and laugh over). They are only two but they want to form a line so they need more ducks. In the pond/puddle of water they discover two more companions but very strangely on cloudy days these two others disappear and for some reason they won't follow This Duck and That Duck out of the pond. Then suddenly they discover they can fly and in the sky they do find other ducks - but where are they going and why?  The final page of this book will give you the biggest smile. 

This Duck (a confident female) and That Duck (a trepidatious male) enjoy each other’s companionship in the “wadey-water” until discovering a wider world makes the extrovert wish for more friends.This Duck yearns to lead a “more ducky” line when they move about, prompting her to wish for Other Ducks. Yeomans’ language is a delightful combination of the childlike and the existential. When questioned about the meaning of “Other Ducks,” she replies, “Like us, only not us.” Sheban’s soft, textured compositions are rendered in watercolor, colored pencil, and graphite; they start out sunny, with warm greens and yellows in the foreground and cool lavender shadows and shapes on the horizon. The lighting and mood change with the seasons and situations. ... A marvelous portrayal of the humor and uncertainty surrounding growth—and the comfort in having a fellow traveler. Kirkus Star review

This book was published in 2018 so it is now out of print BUT if you can find a copy in a library (as I did) you should grab it with both hands and settle down to read this with your young reading companion or borrow it to share with your preschool group. I live near a lake/lagoon with plenty of ducks - it would be so brilliant to read this book during or after your visit to see my ducks. 

Reading a wonderful picture book with a young child is such a meaningful way to discover rich words. In this book we have rushes, lush, wadey-water, waddle, splashed and splished, fretted, and this wonderful final sentence:

"And every single one of them felt downright ducky."

Chris Sheban is the illustrator of these two books below. I would like to see Three Squeezes, Someone like me (Patricia MacLachlan) and Job Wanted. He also illustrated What to do with a box which I will borrow next term from my friend's school library AND I now discover he did the covers of Because of Winn Dixie, Tiger Rising and Paperboy. See more here.

The Lonely Book

The story of a seagull and the cat who taught her to fly