Bompa’s Insect Expedition (A Backyard Bug Book for Kids)

With writer Lloyd Kyi, environmentalist and scientist Suzuki tells a story based on his experiences with his grandchildren, focusing on twins Nakina and Kaoru, who explore the natural world outside their front door with the help of grandfather Bompa. In her signature illustration style, Leng portrays the silver-haired scientist realistically as he arrives at the siblings’ home and invites them to search for insects outside. With a packed knapsack and field notebook, they’re ready for a more ambitious trip (“Bompa, I’ve drawn pictures of every single thing around here,” Kaoru says). But with Bompa’s prodigious knowledge on offer, their findings—a bumblebee, a dragonfly, ants, and mosquitoes—absorb and instruct, as playful spreads visualize the East Asian-cued trio preparing to eat 200 times their weight, like the monarch caterpillar they spot. Spreads full of beauty and information, familial tenderness, and Bompa’s enthusiasm lift this story above ordinary nature explorations with unexpected complexity and substance. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)