My Light by Molly Bang

I picked up My Light by Molly Bang not knowing what to expect.  I was familiar with When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry and a few of her other “touchy-feely” books, so I was surprised when I read My Light to my girls and found a beautiful picture book that provides a fantastic but not-too-technical overview of the energy cycle.  This story is told from the point of view of the sun and briefly goes through the water cycle and goes on to hit the high points of dams using water to produce electricity, windmills using air to produce electricity, and plants using light to produce food.  The plants then go into the earth to produce energy in the form of coal, which is used once again to produce electricity.  Solar energy is introduced last, and all of these disparate sources of electricity are synthesized into the flip of a light switch.  The book ends with a pulling away from earth, back to the viewpoint of the sun.  There are copious author notes detailing the energy cycle at the end of the book, as well as a link to Molly Bang’s website where she provides even more information.  (I also learned on her website that she has written several science books that I think would be worth a look.)  First and foremost, though, Molly Bang is a talented artist.  Her illustrations in this book almost literally pop off the page.  Because of the illustrations and the simple way in which a very complex process is described, I think this book has lots of kid appeal.  Lulu agrees.

I’m linking this post up at this week’s Nonfiction Monday which is hosted by Wrapped in Foil.