Most Popular Books by Joanne Ryder

Slowly the morning sun lights up a graceful spring garden, warming the plants and animals that live there. Nestled on a tree branch, a tiny creature awakens. Then, stretching and spreading his wings wide, the hummingbird dances into the sunlight to begin his busy day. Together, award-winning nature author Joanne Ryder and wildlife artist Judith Lopex paint a background of charm and delicacy against which we follow the movements of the lively humming bird and his mate. Readers of all ages will be captivated by this gentle portrait and will readily appreciate the drama and beauty to be found in the lives of these tiniest of birds.

In a field of lacy leaves, a small caterpillar hatches, grows, and sheds its skin, becoming a smooth, green creeper. It eats and changes some more, then in a sequence of remarkable close-ups, spins a sliken sling in which to pupate—until it finally bursts forth as a brilliant black swallowtail butterfly. Includes suggestions on how children can grow butterfiles in their own gardens.

Celebrated the creatures of the earth, from spiders dangling in their webs to owls hooting and hunting out of sight, and asks that we respect and care for them.

A series of poems that depict the world of a field mouse from sundown to sunup.

An intriguing journey into the natural world -- from deep in the grass to high overhead. "There's a worm on a string, who is swaying in space. There's a white butterfly on a circle of lace." As a young child takes a walk in the woods, the world comes alive with creatures and treasures big and small -- from ants and lizards to moles and hawks. But the most special discovery of the day is the fawn in the grass who watches the narrator's journey begin and end. Joanne Ryder's lyrical text and Keiko Narahashi's beautifully detailed illustrations capture the wonders of nature from a child's point of view.

My mother calls me from darkness to light. . . . I wrap her words around me, warm with good wishes for the day to come. Joanne Ryder's heartwarming text and Peter Catalanotto's glowing art celebrate the tender, everyday moments shared between a mother and daughter. In every welcome and whisper, laugh and farewell, the ever-changing tones of a mother's voice express a gift a daughter can treasure -- her mother's constant love.

A man working in his garden finds a delicate worm, a beetle in shining armor, and a leaf-green mantis and shares these treasures with his young daughter. "Lovely double-page, impressionistic oil paintings...provide a picturesque setting for this simple, straightforward description of a special parent/child outing."--School Library Journal.

Publisher Description

In dynamic words and dramatic pictures, Earthdance invites young readers to become not just part of the earth, but Earth itself.

Tucked into bed after a long day of playing, Anna’s imagination brings her to her favorite park—enhanced with magical qualities she’s never seen before—in Joanne Ryder’s exciting bedtime tale. When the park lamps glow, Anna knows it’s time to leave the old stone lion, the pigeons, and the shy goldfish that keep her company during the daylight. As the bedtime approaches and her father shuts off her light, Anna’s imagination takes flight and brings her back to the park she loves. But in the cover of night, the park is now magical and filled with friendly crocodiles, energetic monkeys, and a lion who takes Anna to his secret waterfall. “With flattened perspectives and variegated tones, Schwartz paints, like Rousseau, a primitive world of friendly beasts and tangled vegetation.” – School Library Journal

Rhyming text describes many different kinds of hugs.

A snail's life from the time it is hatched to the time it lays its own eggs.

Describes the physical characteristics of a firefly from the time it is a glowworm until adulthood.

School is in session! But this is no ordinary kindergarten class. Meet sixteen young giant panda cubs at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda at the Wolong Nature Preserve. The cubs are raised together from infancy in a protected setting, where they grow strong. Under the watchful eyes of the scientists and workers, the cubs learn skills that will help prepare them to be released into the wild. Follow a day in the life of the cubs with Joanne Ryder's spare and simple text and full-color photographs by Dr. Katherine Feng, Wolong's leading photographer. These special cubs have captured the attention of people around the globe. Thanks to dedicated staff and unique resources at Wolong, this threatened species now has a second chance. Here is the true story of their incredible journey toward hope and survival.

Four furry squirrels leap and glide through the night sky, feeding and playing until the approach of daybreak.

There are many kinds of kisses to share.

Fans of How to Train Your Dragon will love this whimsical tale, the first in a series, by a Newbery Honor winner, featuring charming illustrations and pet "training tips" in each chapter. Crusty dragon Miss Drake has a new pet human, precocious Winnie. Oddly enough, Winnie seems to think Miss Drake is her pet—a ridiculous notion! Unknown to most of its inhabitants, the City by the Bay is home to many mysterious and fantastic creatures, hidden beneath the parks, among the clouds, and even in plain sight. And Winnie wants to draw every new creature she encounters: the good, the bad, and the ugly. But Winnie’s sketchbook is not what it seems. Somehow, her sketchlings have been set loose on the city streets! It will take Winnie and Miss Drake’s combined efforts to put an end to the mayhem . . . before it’s too late. This refreshing debut collaboration by Laurence Yep, a two-time Newbery Honor winner and a Laura Ingalls Wilder Award winner, and Joanne Ryder features illustrations by Mary GrandPré. Praise for A Dragon's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans *“Warm humor, magical mishaps, and the main characters’ budding mutual respect and affection combine to give this opener for a planned series a special shine.” –Booklist, Starred “Aternately comical, suspenseful and sometimes sweetly emotional.” –Kirkus Reviews “With a black-and-white spot illustration opening most chapters, an engaging narrator, and a consistently fluid writing style, this title makes a fine dragon choice for readers.” –School Library Journal “In this series launch, Yep and Ryder conjure up a world where dragons and humans interact, and the results are heartwarming and quite funny.” –Publishers Weekly “A clever and amusing novel that imagines a magical world that nestles right up against our own and sometimes crosses over.” –The Bulleting of the Center for Children’s Books Praise for A Dragon’s Guide to Making Your Human Smarter "Yep and Ryder keep the magic coming with their whimsical fantasy, enhanced by Grandpré's sweet drawings. The story positively vibrates with fun." —Kirkus Reviews " Lighthearted episodes of unusual school lessons and field trips, illustrated by GrandPré’s winsome spot art, are grounded by Miss Drake’s more serious encounters with the goons...a gratifying development as this buoyant, fantastical series continues."—The Horn Book Review

The reader imagines how it feels to be a snail.

Poems and illustrations trace the yearly life cycle of toads from tadoles in the spring to adults which hibernate in the winter.

She's the first giant panda cub ever to survive in captivity in the United States. There are fewer than one thousand giant pandas left in the world, making Hua Mei's birth at the World-Famous San Diego Zoo in August 1999 a cause for celebration. -- Dust Jacket.