The leaf detective: How Margaret Lowman uncovered secrets in the rainforest by Heather Lang, illustrated by Jana Christy

 I have long proclaimed my dislike of picture book biographies. However, I've always pointed out that this is just for my audience - I can see a lot of uses for them in a school setting and as I provide more and more materials for a school audience I find more uses for them myself. However, I am still picky! There needs to be context, a smooth blending of art and narrative, and relevance of the person presented.

This picture book biography, created by a veteran picture book biographer and an experienced illustrator, does an excellent job of hitting all these points.

Christy's colorful illustrations, with an emphasis on bursting clouds of green, accompany Lang's narration of the story of Meg Lowman. Starting with her childhood in New York in the 1950s, where she was shy and fascinated by nature, especially plants, through her early education, she eventually came to study the rainforests of Australia. There she became the first person to figure out a way to climb the massive trees of the rainforest and get an up close view of the canopy. She went on to design canopy walkways, allowing people to see the canopy up close. Lowman went on to educate and help local villagers protect their rainforests and use them for tourism, as well as finding ways to preserve their ecosystem and still make a living.

The narrative includes facts about trees, rainforests, and leaves, written on green leaves and scattered across the pages. Quotations from Meg Lowman are also included. The back matter includes an author's note, with more details about Lowman, photographs of her continued work, an illustration of the levels of a rainforest tree, and sources and bibliography.

Although lengthy for a storytime read-aloud, this is an excellent choice for school classrooms studying women scientists, plants, trees, inventions, and ecology. It's also just a beautiful book, well-written and with lovely illustrations, that readers of many ages will enjoy.

Verdict: If you are looking to expand your picture book biography section, especially of scientists, this is an excellent choice.

ISBN: 9781684371778; Published February 2021 by Calkins Creek; Borrowed from another library in my consortium; Purchased for the library