What's Inside A Flower?: And Other Questions About Science & Nature

What's Inside

by Rachel Ignotofsky

From the creator of the New York Times bestseller Women in Science, comes a nonfiction picture book series ready to grow young scientists by nurturing their curiosity about the natural world--starting with what's inside a flower.

Budding backyard scientists can start exploring their world with this stunning introduction to these flowery show-stoppers--from seeds to roots to blooms. Learning how flowers grow gives kids beautiful building blocks of science and inquiry.

In the launch of a new nonfiction picture book series, Rachel Ignotofsky's distinctive art style and engaging, informative text clearly answers any questions a child (or adult) could have about flowers.

Genres: Picture Books, Science, Nonfiction, Nature, Childrens, Gardening, Plants

48 pages, Hardcover

Published February 2, 2021

About the author

Rachel Ignotofsky grew up in New Jersey on a healthy diet of cartoons and pudding. She graduated with honors from Tyler School of Art’s graphic design program in 2011. Now she lives in beautiful Kansas City, Missouri, where she spends all day drawing and learning as much as she can. She has a passion for taking dense information and making it fun and accessible and is dedicated to creating educational works of art.

Rachel is inspired by history and science and believes that illustration is a powerful tool that can make learning exciting. She uses her work to spread her message about education, scientific literacy, and powerful women. She hopes this book inspires girls and women to follow their passions and dreams.

Reviews

[Darla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This gorgeous, illustrated guide to a flower is a joy to learn from. After giving us some basic info about flowers – different types, where they grow, etc., Ignotofsky starts at the beginning.

A flower starts as a seed underground.

Included in the two-page spread are the bugs, bacteria, and fungi who help prepare the soil. Then comes the rain, and the plant begins to grow. Page after page reveals the components that contribute to growth and the science that is happening. All the way through to the seeds that are produced and then begin the cycle once again. This book is accessible to young listeners who will be thrilled by the illustrations and contains enough detail to satisfy older learners. An exquisite tribute to the flowers we all know and love.

[Rachel (Kalanadi) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well this has strengthened my resolve to plant a proper flower garden in the spring. Hyacinth! Lilies! 😍

[Kelly Lyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

my youngest is going into 4th grade this year and will be learning about plants and flowers and this got her really interested in nature and flowers and bugs.

[Mary BookHounds · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrations in this book are truly amazing.  They are full of deep rich colors that match the tone of the book as each page goes into the smallest detail of what makes a flower and what's inside.  I love to garden and know most of the science behind flowers and their purpose but this explains everything in easy to understand terms that even a small child can relate to.  This is a book that will grow with a child and they can use it as a reference book.  It should inspire everyone to plant a seed and watch it grow. 

What sets this book apart from a lot of early readers is that it goes through ALL of the steps nature goes through to produce that flower.  From the composition of soil to sun and water, even the worms are noted and easy to understand.  I can easily see this book inspiring children to start their own flower from seed.  A perfect adventure that can be done on any sunny window sill. 

[Mid-Continent Public Library]

This gorgeous, illustrated guide to a flower is a joy to learn from. After giving us some basic info about flowers – different types, where they grow, etc., Ignotofsky starts at the beginning.

A flower starts as a seed underground.

Included in the two-page spread are the bugs, bacteria, and fungi who help prepare the soil. Then comes the rain, and the plant begins to grow. Page after page reveals the components that contribute to growth and the science that is happening. All the way through to the seeds that are produced and then begin the cycle once again. This book is accessible to young listeners who will be thrilled by the illustrations and contains enough detail to satisfy older learners. An exquisite tribute to the flowers we all know and love. *Review by Darla from Red Bridge*

[Nicole M. Hewitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction

This book is utterly gorgeous and also informative! Every page is fully illustrated from edge to edge, creating stunning panoramic backdrops for the educational text. Not only is the overall effect wonderful, but I loved the little details, like the subtle labeling of flowers on many of the pages (my daughter loved her botany class where she had to identify wildflowers, and she would have loved seeing them all labeled here.) The main focus of the book is the illustrations—kids are going to learn about plants from this, but it’s meant to be more of an introduction to plants than a full educational text. I think it does what it aims to do perfectly, though. Any kid could pick this book up and be instantly engaged, and the non-fiction text doesn’t seem overwhelming, so they’ll learn things without really even trying. It will also inspire kids to want to learn even more, which is always a good thing! This book would be a perfect addition to any classroom to pique students’ interest in plants, and I would also have loved owning it at home when my kids were young.

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via Rockstar Book Tours for review purposes. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

[Grace M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic and beautiful picture book. Rachel Ignotofsky’s style and artistry never ceases to amaze me. She helps to inform the reader about flowers, pollination, and plant reproduction in gorgeous illustrations and easy to understand explanations and examples. I can’t wait to someday read this to my future children.

[Sunday · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous illustrations and engrossing details about the life cycle of flowers and the ecosystem they rely on and support. Parts could easily be read aloud in grades k-3 as a book talk and then left in the classroom library to be snatched up and examined. The illustrations include an abundance of labels. Imagine student pairs sitting next to each other, asking, "So what's happening on this page?" and engaging in animated conversations as they notice and name (with the support of text features) what they are learning. The layout and design provide lots of access points for a wide variety of readers/learners.

[Jaid · Rating 5 out of 5]

This chidlren's book about the inner mechanisms of a flower is beautiful, informative, and a helpful guide for curious children - the three things I aspire to be more than anything in this world.

I am obsessed with Rachel Ignotofsky's artwork and would love to wallpaper my living room with her designs, but for now I will settle for enjoying it in the small doses she provides through her children's books.

I would highly recommend her other books as well.

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book, with lots of cheerful, colorful illustrations. There is occasionally decent information but there is also a breezy, unscientific tone I did not love and appalling treacly prose and sentiment and illogic masquerading as reason. "Each bud opens little by little until it blooms into a beautiful FLOWER" The reader is told that 'during photosynthesis plants make oxygen' the illustration shows a scribbled black cloud of CO2 being transformed into a puffy white cloud of 'fresh' oxygen 'that everyone breathes.' 'Beautiful' and 'fresh' and 'everyone' are undefined terms and essentially meaningless. I feel like the text and illustrations indicate only pretty flowers and 'fresh' oxygen are valuable when the fact is we need insignificant and homely flowers as much, if not more, than 'pretty' ones. CO2 is absolutely essential to life too. Readers are told 'Pollination is between flowers that are the same type (species)' But there is no explanation of what 'same type' or species are. And even if there were an explanation, that statement is not accurate - pollination isn't an 'is' it occurs; it is a process. And while it primarily occurs within species and subspecies it absolutely can occur across species. There are lots of missed opportunities to make information stickier. We are told accurately that color helps attract pollinators to flowers, but we aren't told that different colors attract specific pollinators. (red for hummingbirds, yellow for bees, etc.) We are told that fragrance attracts night pollinators, but not that most plants pollinated by bats and moths at night are white or yellow, since that is most visible at night. There is a good seed dispersal page, though I would have loved a note that let kids know that showy flowers are tied to heavy pollen. Those plants need to advertise for animals to move their pollen around. Wind pollinated flowers have light pollen, nondescript flowers and no scent, as the wind doesn't have eyes or nostrils. Those are the plants that typically cause allergies as their pollen floats. Maybe if we taught kids that we would see an end to the annoying allergy medicine commercials depicting women stuffing their faces into long stem roses and then theatrically sneezing. What is the point of a page that tells children 'We have learned about how every part of a flower does an important job' and then tells them 'The stem holds the plant up tall.' What about prostrate plants? Two other massively irritating sentences that waste space are: "Flowers do important things for everyone." and "Plants also do countless other things!" Really? Do the publishers think adding an exclamation point to a poorly crafted sentence will save it? Dirt does important things for everyone, as do atoms and death and roads. Does saying that help me understand or appreciate them? The final page's three sentences sum up the book - if they make sense and seem useful to you, proceed and read. "Whatever you plant in your garden will be lovely. Because you know what's inside a flower and you understand the science that makes flowers special' (That sentence SLAYS me-is it really science that makes flowers special-whatever that means? How does science do that? Can science please come and make me special too?) Finally, 'Happy flowers mean a happy earth for you and me." Kids deserve the complete story, not just 'the for dummies' version.

[Westveil Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was granted complimentary access to a review copy of What's Inside a Flower as part of my participation in the introductory blog tour for this title with Rockstar Book Tours. Thank you to all involved in affording me this opportunity (and solving the regional access issues for this Canadian!) My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.

What's Inside a Flower is a beautifully illustrated book about the science of flowering plants written in appropriate language for elementary school-aged kids and illustrated in the style of traditional botanical anatomy diagrams turned into more fleshed out illustrations.

As a science nerd, this 33 year old thoroughly enjoyed perusing these pages and gazing at the gorgeous cross-sectional diagrams. My 3-year-old enjoyed playing "eye spy" finding the different flowers and bugs throughout the book, but understandably didn't get much from the science lesson element. She's a little young! I suspect this book would be better presented to kids 6+ for optimal knowledge acquisition.

I would absolutely recommend this to pretty much any parent, caregiver or teacher out there and I'll be telling my elementary school teacher mother & sister about it next time we chat!

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What's Inside a Flower? is a beautifully illustrated question and answer book for young children. Each realistically drawn image is labelled for children that constantly ask "what's that?" The questions keep it simple while still answering questions using scientific facts. The illustrations help to explain the science in a fun and easy to understand manner. Answering questions about how flowers grow, why, what they need, how seeds are made, pollination and more, What's Inside a Flower? is sure to please the young budding naturalist in your life.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 or 5 Stars? What a juxtaposition between the gorgeous flora illustrations (that really look like they could be in a coffee table book) and the rather cartoony insects and humans. I’m not sure it totally worked for me but I appreciate it and like that young children are going to be exposed to the beautiful artwork through this kid-friendly approach. The content is good for an introduction and the back matter is also strong including sources and further resources. So I’ll say five stars and recommend for kindergartners and very early elementary. My six-year-old who loves plants really enjoyed it.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fabulous nonfiction picture book: it's beautiful, informative, and accessible. Ignotofsky does a fabulous job explaining with art and text how flowers grow, clearly detailing their anatomy and how each part functions, and their role in the ecosystem. A useful book to include in units on plants or share with young gardeners. This is definitely a book to inspire a walk in a garden.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful book and great addition to my classroom collection. Some of the text reads a little young for my intended audience (4th grade), but it will be beneficial all the same!

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated and fun run through the plant life cycle, with great diagrams of all the parts involved. Perfect for any curious budding botanist.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very educational book for young readers.

[Beau · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the books from this series but the pages can be pretty cluttered and text therefor hard to read.

[Claire Wrobel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated and accessibly informative

[Jessica Mackey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gets five stars for the artwork alone! Vibrant, colorful, beautiful!!

[Steena Hernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for my homeschool lessons! Informative and fun!

[Emelisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books are amazing. The illustrations are amazing. It’s detailed and easy to read. I want to collect all her books!

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me wish I was a kid again discovering the magic of flowers. The information is not overwhelming and each bit of information builds on another.

The illustrations were totally amazing in every day. The color! The beauty!

[Moonkiszt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Featured in a grandma reads session.

Spring is a grand time to focus on the flowers, and that's what we did in reading this book. We figured out the parts and pieces, functions and aspects of the flower, from her roots to the guests she beguiles with her petals.

All in all my group passed with flying colors. It helps that they have very good gardeners in their homes, and are excellent apprentices!

[Terri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and informative NF picture book

[BreeAnn (She Just Loves Books) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This was a pretty darn cool book! I know that sounds a little dramatic, but seriously, it’s awesome!

So, why do I like this little gem? It’s got amazing illustrations that are gorgeous, and beg to be looked at. Along with the beautiful artwork, the information provided in this book is great for not only children but adults as well!

Illustration of plant roots and dirt
This book is truly targeted at 4-7-year-olds, and I agree with that age range. It can, however, stretch beyond that age. I would suggest this for children in preschool through middle elementary. Its artwork will capture the attention of the little ones, and the educational information will delight everyone!

I was provided a gifted copy of this book for free. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spring has sprung in Chicago, and our second grade class has just started our new science unit on plants, so when I discovered Rachel Ignotofsky’s What’s Inside a Flower? it was love at first sight! The gorgeous illustrations ignite the imagination and made me want to wallpaper our classroom with its pages. The text is supplemented with speech bubbles, diagrams and labels, which lend themselves for rereading. I can’t wait to collect all of the books in Ignotofsky’s repertoire!

[Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent science book for pre-school children and early primary students. Lots of colorful, busy illustrations of different flowers; with info on the parts of a flower, pollinators and pollination, and how a flower makes seeds. Includes a bibliography.

[DIVISHA MITHAL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Premise of the book:
The book talks about flowers and how plants use flowers to grow new seeds and reproduce. It starts with how a seed first grows into a plant and how the flowers of the plants use pollinators to transfer pollen to another flowers thus completing the cycle of reproduction in plants. It also talks briefly about the importance of plants as well as how plants use sunshine to make food for themselves.

Design of the book:
The book is all about the beautiful illustrations that will bring the flowers alive for the reader. At 48 pages the book is perfect size to introduce the plant life cycle to the kids. If there are beautiful illustrations to appeal the reader, the words are also complimentary and not too difficult for kids to understand. Most of the pages just have few lines to small paragraphs detailing the illustration. This book is a great source of information and can be used to read aloud in classrooms as well as at home. Beginner readers can try reading this one on their own too.

Learnings from the book:
As I mentioned the book is about the plant life cycle. In the later part of the book, there are illustrations with labels which pinpoint exact parts of the flower thus enabling kids to know the correct names of all parts of the plant. It reminded me of the biology diagrams that we drew in school. ;)

Mommy's Verdict:
With it's vibrant illustrations, this book is a perfect accompaniment for any outdoor picnic and teaching kids all about plants and their life cycle.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intended for young readers, this picture book positively blooms with sumptuous artwork, created with traditional and digital methods. One of the most amazing double-page spreads is the one depicting the root system and the soil in which the plant is growing. Each page is bright and visually appealing, and readers may find it difficult to tear their eyes away from the images to read the text about flowers. Once they do, they'll realize that it contains interesting bits of information about flowers, facts that are related in an easy to understand but never condescending manner. The central questions explored here relate to how a flower grows, what makes some plants have flowers that bloom, and what is inside a flower, as indicated by the book's title. Beginning with a seed that starts the whole thing off, the author follows the plant as it grows and eventually blossoms. But she doesn't stop there, making sure to address the importance of pollinators and how seeds are created as well as how they are spread from place to place, sometimes hitching a ride on the wind or an animal. Readers can't help but be impressed with the wonders of nature after reading this book, and I would imagine most of them will want to plant their own flower garden as a next step. This would be an excellent companion to Dianna Hutts Aston's equally marvelous A Seed Is Sleepy and a useful title to anyone considering a unit on seeds or gardens.