While doing some browsing of the 2025 online readers I have access to, I found a few “not a series-series.” One series was about having a crazy parent (a mermaid and unicorn) or an odd teacher (a T-Rex dinosaur) and then I found another not a series-series about science. The first series was fiction and I also wanted a non-fiction book, so I was lucky I found both. The second series was found when I looked at a cover that was an axolotl. Yes! I love those cute little monsters! Oh, wait, they are Not a Monster? Or at least that is what author Claudia Guadalupe Martinez is telling me.
They are also telling me a jumping bean is Not a Bean and prairie dogs are Not a Dog. And Laura Gonzalez is the illustrator of all three books. The images are simple, sweet, but give some details. The text is a bit heavy but not overwhelming allowing for multiple ages to be read to and read (perhaps with a bit of help). The imagery is nice, cozy, cute. They are not WOW but they are not lacking and really allow them to be accessible for most readers.
All three are due in mid-June and well worth the wait. They are great introduction books about these three animals. Yes, even the jumping bean has an animal involved in the actions of jumping. Which I did not know, so I was excited to learn something. And even the prairie dog is not something you usually see, but axolotls are becoming more popular. This way you can find a new animal for your animal lover, or to just add to what wildlife your students/children have around them.
All three will also be available in Spanish.