The opening spread for this gorgeously illustrated book asks the question: Does water make you wonder? And if your answer is “no,” I dare you to open to any page (It’s a browsable format.) and read a sentence or two. You may find yourself pulled in by the answers to questions you may not have thought to ask. Like:

OR

Additional questions include What lives in our oceans? Is there water underground? How do rivers form? What are lakes? How is a sea different from an ocean? How is an ocean different from a sea? (I love how this question is flipped, and includes an answer from the larger perspective.), How powerful is water? What causes flooding? and many others. Questions lead to how humans have transported and used water for centuries, how we contain water, how we’ve bathed (or not), how we’ve sought to explain water’s many mysteries, and ends with a spread that offers up suggestions on how we can protect our most valuable resource.

Even the end papers offer up interesting factoids to pull readers in, the front being different from the back.

I like how each page turn is a little surprise, the subject matter branching like rivers or the way the human brain makes connections. And that seems fitting, since 80-85% of our brains are water.

One factoid on the back is particularly heart-stopping, and could serve as a jumping off point for a social studies investigation:

Near modern-day St. Louis, Missouri, North America's two longest rivers—the Mississippi and Missouri—meet. Centuries ago, the Mississippian culture built the city of Cahokia at this confluence. In 1250 CE, more people lived there than in the city of London. 

It is one tiny nod to the indigenous culture that thrived at the confluence of North America’s mightiest river systems, a culture that was nearly eliminated by colonization.

Originally published in Russian, I’m pleased to note that the translator, Lena Traer, is credited on the cover!

Activities:

For Earth Day, pair this book with The Day the River Caught Fire by Barry Wittenstein, illustrated by Jessie Hartland and We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom, illustrated by Michaela Goade.

Pair this book with What is a River by author/illustrator, Monika Vaicenavičienė. Discuss how these two authors approached similar subject matter. Describe the differences and similarities you find. Is one of the approaches more to your liking?

Make a landscape watercolor painting, similar to this YouTube video from Nick’s Color.

Title: Water: Discovering the Precious Resource All Around Us

Author/Illustrator: Olga Fadeeva

Translator: Lena Traer

Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Your Readers, 2024

Ages: Elementary school

Themes: water, STEM, history/geography

For more perfect picture book recommendations, please visit Susanna Hill’s website.