Books & Audiobooks
The Yellow Cedar Award is my favourite category in the Forest of Reading program. I always thought non-fiction reads were tedious, but this category changed my mind. There are so many fascinating topics in this section that I never would have read before. If you have a child in grades four to eight, these nominees are a gold mine for school projects. Here are three highlights from this year’s nominees. (For a full list of nominees scroll below.)
Welcome to AI: What is Artificial Intelligence and How Will it Change Our Lives
by Matthieu Dugal
The world of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly expanding. Some see AI as a positive advancement, others see it as a dangerous development. Welcome To AI provides a neutral outlook of the potentials of AI and what it means for the future.
It begins with a look at ancient civilizations and their early attempts to create artificial beings. We tend to think of AI as a modern concept, but people have been creating machines in human likeness for thousands of years. The book goes on to introduce key figures in AI development, including Ada Lovelace and Alan Turing. It concludes with the human element of AI. For better or for worse, AI reflects the humans who program it. It will pick up our biases and flaws, as well as our positive qualities.
Overall, Welcome to AI takes a complex subject and breaks it down into simple sections. It is easy to understand and provides a solid overview of AI’s past, present and future possibilities.
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Think Like a Goat: The Wildly Smart Ways Animals Communicate, Cooperate and Innovate
by Lisa Deresti Betik
Humans can achieve incredible things. But animals also possess a unique set of smarts that allows them to communicate, solve problems and work together to achieve goals. Chickadees will increase their call to implore nearby birds to swarm together and chase the predators away. Elephants will work together to access food sources otherwise out of reach. Goats can learn to navigate complex puzzles and even remember how to solve them 10 months later.
Think Like a Goat is divided into five sections that look at how animals have evolved to cooperate, and even empathize with each other. The information is presented in colourful blurbs and can be read in any order. It will appeal to readers who are reluctant to read books cover to cover.
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Owls: Who Gives a Hoot
by Frances Backhouse
It’s dinner time. Your prey is near. But you can’t see it. You can only hear it. And you only have a split second to grab it. Using your feet. Without making a sound. That’s how owls do it.
Owls: Who Gives a Hoot is an introduction to the different species of owls across North America. These birds of prey are masterful hunters. They have binocular vision, but their eyes don’t rotate like human eyes do. Instead, they move their heads in an almost 270-degree direction to adjust their view. Their eyes cannot focus on things up close, so they catch their prey based on the sound it makes.
The photographs alone in this book will teach you so much about these nocturnal creatures. They are so vibrant you can see how owls’ faces are shaped to amplify sound and how their wings are designed to fly in silence. It is a great resource to learn about owl behaviour as well as how to protect their habitats.
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