Who Were They Really? by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Do you enjoy Winnie-the-Pooh's stories? How about Peter Pan, Little Women, or the Little House on the Prairie books?

Have you ever wondered how Peter Rabbit got his name, or how Alice had so many adventures in Wonderland?

Ms. Pfeffer has collected the true stories behind these favorite characters, including pictures both of their authors and of their subjects. (Did you know that the real Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends are in New York City? They live at the Donnell Library.) You might be surprised at where some of the stories have come from, and the lives of the people who inspired them.

The Snake Scientist by Sy Montgomery and Nic Bishop

In the Narcisse Snake Dens, 130 kilometers north of Winnipeg, Canada, approximately 60,000 garter snakes gather every year to sleep out the cold winter months.

And in spring, snake scientist Bob Mason and his team of scientists and volunteers gather to study these thousands of amazing and interesting creatures. They measure them, weigh them, check their temperature, and ask them to do experiments so that maybe, one fact at a time, we can learn the answers to questions like: How do snakes hibernate? How do snakes recognize each other? How do they travel from the dens to the marshes and back every year? Where do baby snakes spend the winters?

Nic Bishop's vibrant photographs bring you face-to-face and nose-to-tongue with these fascinating critters: snakes!