Elinor Wonders Why: Hiding in Plain Sight

Elinor the rabbit is curious about everything. She loves to ”follow her curiosity,“ make observations and test her ideas as she explores nature’s mysteries. One day, Elinor’s curiosity is piqued when she and her friends Olive (an elephant) and Ari (a bat) are playing hide-and-seek. Time after time, though the three friends choose what seem like perfectly good hiding spots, the goat twins Mary and Lizzie keep finding them! And quickly! How can they make themselves harder to find? Is the solution hiding in plain sight?

Based on the Emmy-nominated PBS Kids television show Elinor Wonders Why, created by Jorge Cham and Daniel Whiteson, this unique early reader graphic novel series tells fictional stories with a science twist. It’s sure to spark readers’ interest in the natural world, inspire them to ask questions and teach them scientific skills. This title provides a perfect, easy-to-understand introduction to the concept of camouflage. Sidebars with science facts and key vocabulary words are interspersed throughout the story, and an activity at the end of the book teaches children how to observe the animals in their own neighborhood and identify which ones use camouflage to hide in plain sight. Highly visual, with simple text, it makes a great choice for a first graphic novel. There are excellent connections to life science lessons on animals, characteristics of living things and habitats here.