Description: "Journal meets sketchbook in this luminously illustrated and thoroughly informative picture book poetry collection that captures the beauty and complexity of monarch and mourning cloak butterflies"--
Brief description: Melissa Stewart is the award-winning author of more than 150 science books for children, including the celebrated Meet the Mini Mammals, illustrated by Brian Lies, and Can an Aardvark Bark? and Fourteen Monkeys: A Rain Forest Rhyme, both illustrated by Steve Jenkins. After earning a bachelor's degree in biology from Union College and a master's degree in science journalism from New York University, Melissa worked as a children's book editor for nine years before becoming a full-time writer. While gathering information for her books, she has explored tropical rain forests in Costa Rica, gone on safari in East Africa, and swum with sea lions in the Galapagos Islands. She lives in Acton, Massachusetts.
Review Quotes: *The author focuses on the familiar orange monarch and the less-celebrated brown mourning cloak, comparing their adaptations through accessible verse. . . . Brannen's illustrations, rendered in watercolor, pen, and pencil, evoke authentic field sketches, complete with color-swatch palettes, date and time stamps, and observational notes presented in a naturalist's handwriting. . . . The stunning "A Winter's Rest: Monarch" spread demonstrates Brannen's meticulous attention to detail--hundreds of individual monarchs clustering on fir branches in their Mexican hibernation site create a mesmerizing tapestry of orange and black against evergreen and sky blue. . . . Enthusiastic young naturalists will devour every detail. A pretty, thoughtful celebration.--Kirkus Starred Review "December 15, 2025"