GENRE: STEM/STEAM, Humor, Informational Fiction
WORDS: 663
Query:
Dear Picture Book Heroes,
This is a story of environmental hope.
It’s a story of resilience.
It’s a story of… a frog.
THE FROG THAT WOULD NOT STAY EXTINCT is a 663 word informational fiction picture book. With narration that invitingly breaks the fourth wall, this true story about a feisty amphibian teaches kids science while eliciting their giggles.
After malaria mitigation destroyed its unique marshy habitat along the River Jordan in the 1950s, the Hula Painted Frog couldn’t be found for over half a century. The species was declared extinct. But in 2011 the frog leaped into the scientific spotlight when it reemerged in the waters of a small nature preserve.
I’m a former outdoor educator from the redwood forests of California where I taught elementary-aged children the “proper” way to kiss a banana slug and rocked out with my guitar to songs about decomposition and scat. Now I write playful STEM picture books, and just as when I taught kids while hiking on trails, I believe that coupling optimism with science is what best empowers children to navigate their future earth. THE FROG THAT WOULD NOT STAY EXTINCT will appeal to readers who seek uplifting environmental stories, like Follow the Moon Home, written by Philippe Cousteau and Deborah Hopkinson, illustrated by Meilo So; and Moth: An Evolution Story, by Isabel Thomas and illustrated by Daniel Egnéus.
I have additional manuscripts available upon request.
Thank you for making PBParty 2024 happen!
Excerpt:
You are a mystery.
You are a miracle.
You are. . . a frog.
Pay attention, little amphibians.
This is the mucky mud, soggy swamp story of how we disappeared.
It’s the jumpy-jump, peek-a-hop story of how we came back.
It’s our story.
The Hula Painted Frog story.
Be still, tadpoles.
Snuggle down in the mud, froglets.
And you, teen croakers, take those headsets off your tympanums and listen up!
What inspired you to write this story & what do you have in common with it:
When my six year-old learned, from a picture book, that the Yangtze River Dolphin was extinct, I saw sorrow wrap around her. How could I educate my daughter about the environment and not extinguish her magnificent, earth-loving spirit? She asked if animals came back from extinction. I held her and said, “No,” but I really wanted my answer to be wrong. Voilà: The Hula Painted Frog, re-emerging fifty-six years and one “extinction” designation later.
As a former outdoor educator, I believe in teaching science with optimism and letting children be children, for as many years as they can.
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