Welcome back to our website this morning I wanted to bring you a new children’s book. A River of Dust: The Life-Giving Link Between North Africa and the Amazon written by Jilanne Hoffman and illustrated by Eugenia Mello which I received a physical copy of the book in exchange for this review from my family.
I love finding children’s books that can be used not only for Storytime but to teach a lesson. Which is what you will find when you sit down to read A River of Dust: The Life-Giving Link Between North Africa and the Amazon. The book is written for Lower Elementary but children and adults can and will learn from this book with can be used in our Homeschool Geography class.
Did you know millions of years ago no, Ocean lived between us which was a fun fact to share with David and Charlie. I love how the Author makes us think dust from North Africa is telling the story a Country we will be able to study in our Homeschool. Through the book Charlie and I learned about the Country Sahel which none of my family had heard of. Did you know about Sahel?
Charlie and I will be looking up “Harmattan Winds” and learn more about it this year which we also had never heard of. Had you? I loved seeing the people in the book and how they dress and carry bowls on their heads. Do you think you could do that? Then we learned of a new gras Cram-Cram we want to look up.
Look at Deer aren’t they pretty? Then look at the people in the boat on the river. Wouldn’t you like to be with them? Or check out the Birds. here is words like Plateau we can use in our Homeschool Spelling Test. We reach the Atlantic Ocean and to see if this is the end of the journey you will need to pick up a copy of the book to read.
Charlie being 16 soon learned so much through this book and I can’t wait to share it with my nieces and nephews. I believe all schools should have copies on hand for their students to read and it’s the perfect Homeschool Resource. Not only will children learn new things but adults as well especially if they check out the education guides at.
There are questions at the end of the book which will keep the learning going long after your read the story to your children. The book also mentions NASA which will lead to many more lessons for Charlie to study in his Homeschool this year. Would you like to join us as we study NASA and Space and so much more.
Over and Under the Rainforest meets This Is How We Do It in A River of Dust—a celebration of global interconnectedness with an environmental lens, at a time when we need it most. It is science with a beating heart.
I am dust,
the dust of North Africa.
I connect continents.
The dust of the Sahel—a ribbon of land between the Sahara and the Savannah—lifts with the Harmattan wind each Winter Season. But this is not just any dust. The Sahel’s dust will mix with dust from the Sahara and travel thousands of miles westward, across the African continent and the Atlantic Ocean, to reunite with its unforgotten home deep in the Amazon basin.
Told from the perspective of dust, A River of Dust takes readers on a journey through vibrantly illustrated landscapes, celebrating the power and wonder of Earth’s Ecosystems, and showing how these tiny particles are key to the health of our planet. It is a lyrical ode to global connection and to the vital roles that even the smallest among us can play.
GLOBAL CONNECTION: Just like This Is How We Do It, this book shows how we are all interdependent on this tiny blue marble hurtling through space.
SMALL PARTICLES, MIGHTY IMPACT: This powerful story of the Sahel’s very necessary contribution to the world demonstrates how one of the driest places on Earth nourishes one of the wettest. And if dust has such a far-reaching effect, readers can imagine how important their own impact could be on the world around them.
EDUCATIONAL TOOL: With strong STEM themes, this book offers plenty of ideas to incorporate into lesson plans, from units on Geography and environmental Science, particularly lessons on the Rainforest, global warming, and interconnected ecosystems. Educator guides can be found at the author’s website.
SOOTHING BEDTIME REASSURANCE: Poetic and yearning, this picture book’s gentle message reassures readers that they can remain connected with loved ones despite the distance that may separate them.
LUSH ART: Depicting vivid landscapes, from the deserts of Africa to the Rainforests of the Amazon, illustrator Eugenia Mello brings this lyrical picture book to life. The gold spattering of foil dust on the jacket makes this cover glow!
QUESTIONS FOR CURIOUS MINDS: Meticulously researched information included at the back of the book provides further explananation and compelling scientific facts for curious readers and supplemental information for teachers. Did you know that an average of 700,000 semi trucks worth of dust makes the journey each year? That there are more trees in the Amazon than there are stars in the Milky Way Galaxy? That NASA satellites have been measuring the dust for over 15 years? That the continents may rejoin about 250 million years from now?
Perfect for:
- Resource for teachers and librarians seeking books about nature, the earth, and ecology for kids
- Parents looking for non-fiction picture books and science books for children
- A beautiful environmental picture book and lyrical story for anyone interested in learning about ecosystems and the environment
- Fans of Over and Under the Rainforest, Over and Under the Pond, and other popular nature books for young readers
Meet the Author: Jilanne Hoffmann
Jilanne Hoffmann has been a Zoo train engineer, a waitress, a “real” engineer, a fitness trainer, a Tai Chi instructor, a freelance writer, and now writes fiction and nonfiction for kids and adults. The dust in her shoes comes from every continent, except the icy one that’s drier than the Sahara. She has a degree in engineering and an MFA in Creative Writing, and as a perpetual student, starts many sentences with the words WHAT, WHY, and HOW. Jilanne lives in San Francisco with her husband, son, and rescue dog named Wrigley.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
