We’ve got a passion for books in this house and I love to add fuel to the fire!  My oldest has just begun 2nd grade today (yeay!) and as a congratulations, I handed her a bundle of educational yet fun new books from Candlewick Press, one being a Pop-Up New York!:

• The History of Money: From Bartering to Banking by Martin Jenkins

What can take the form of a stone with a hole in the middle, a string of shells, a piece of paper, or a plastic card? The answer is money, of course. But when did we start using it? And why? What does money have to do with writing? And how do taxes and interest work? From the Stone Age to modern banking, this lighthearted and engaging account traces the history of the stuff that makes the world go round.

With clarity and humor, Martin Jenkins and Satoshi Kitamura take readers on a fascinating tour of the history of money.

• Tiny Creatures: The World of Microbes by Nicola Davies

All around the world — in the sea, in the soil, in the air, and in your body — there are living things so tiny that millions could fit on an ant’s antenna. They’re busy doing all sorts of things, from giving you a cold and making yogurt to eroding mountains and helping to make the air we breathe. If you could see them with your eye, you’d find that they all look different, and that they’re really good at changing things into something else and at making many more microbes like themselves! From Nicola Davies comes a first exploration for young readers of the world’s tiniest living organisms.

Find out how the smallest things on the planet do some of the biggest jobs in this intriguing introduction to the world of microbes.

• Photos Framed: A Fresh Look at the World’s Most Memorable Photographs by Ruth Thompson

Photographs can be beautiful or harrowing, honest or manipulative, dramatic or comforting. Photos Framed explores twenty-seven of the most important and vivid photos taken over the medium’s history, from a formal portrait of Louis Daguerre taken in 1844 to a candid shot of a Cuban girl and her doll in 2011. Readers are invited to use their powers of observation to zoom in on photographic elements, blow up details of the subject matter, think about the big picture, and pan out on the photographer. Photos Framed will open viewers’ eyes to the art of photography and its power to tell a story.

Portrait. Nature. Art. Documentary. A look at some of the world’s most iconic photographs invites viewers to focus on the medium’s place in art and history.

• Flying Machines by Quarto Children’s Books Ltd

Do you love machines that fly? Can you name some key aviation inventions, from balloons to solar-powered planes? Do you know how flight forces such as gravity, drag, thrust, and lift work? Kids who are raring to make their own flying machines can pore through the theory and history of flight, build five different models — a galactic glider, a deadly dart, a whirlybird helicopter, a single-prop Starlite, and a twin-prop SuperStar — and pick up some expert tips on flying them like an ace.

Special features include:
• Tear-out printed sheets for making two paper planes
• Materials for making three propeller-powered machines, including balsa wood body parts, neoprene wings, plastic propellers, wheels, and an elastic band

Ready to take off? Learn all about aerodynamics and find everything you need to make five fabulous flying machines.

• Pop-up New York by Jennie Maizels

Welcome to New York City! Open this engrossing, large-format book and set off on a tour that wends its way from the Statue of Liberty to Yankee Stadium, with many must-see stops along the way. Visit the new World Trade Center and the Empire State Building, feel the urban bustle of Times Square and Grand Central Station, and check out the greenery of the High Line and the Botanical Garden. Filled with fun facts, flaps, and amazing pop-ups, this interactive tour offers plenty of reasons to love New York.

Start spreading the news! A 3D journey explores the Big Apple’s most exciting sites in this inviting novelty book.

Copies were provided by Candlewick Press to facilitate this post.  Post contains affiliate links.