(2) K-3 Magic School Bus series. Illustrated by Bruce Degen. Ms. Frizzle's latest adventure (published posthumously for Cole, alas) takes her class, joined by newcomer Bo who's visiting from China, back 3.5 billion years in Earth's history, then forward through the path of human evolution. Before they board the bus, the students present their own family trees, bridging that familiar concept to "the family tree of the whole human race." Then the antics begin, with the characters taking on the shapes of life forms of increasing complexity across the timeline, from single- and multi-celled organisms through fish, amphibians, reptiles, and primates. Extra time is spent on early and modern human species, including the development of culture and language. A helpful graphic appears every few pages to mark progress through geologic time. As always, the cheerful illustrations pack in entire subtexts: humorous speech-bubble dialogue among the classmates and numerous facts contained in reports and other visual asides. Additional explanations of the evidence for evolution and how natural selection works are appended.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(2) PS Hare's follow-up to Field Trip to the Moon (rev. 9/19) again features a compelling setting, a not-too-scary adventure, and immersive illustrations. This wordless story begins on the book's wraparound cover, with a group of students heading to a bulbous deep-sea bus for a field trip to the ocean floor. Once anchored, the diving suit–clad students embark on a teacher-guided tour past bioluminescent squids, hydrothermal vents, and pillow lava; however, one student is more interested in taking photos than attending class. A dilapidated shipwreck and an ominously positioned treasure chest make for a great photo but result in the young photographer's tumble to the bottom of a trench. A confluence of events quickly unfolds through a series of dramatically arranged panels and spreads, including the child being stranded, discovering the ruins of an ancient city, and encountering a giant pliosaur. (Viewers will recognize the prehistoric creature from earlier in the story, as it was skillfully hidden on nearly every previous page.) A potentially frightening scenario is tempered by the pliosaur's endearing grin and desire for a photo shoot--leading to the inadvertent collapse of the ruins. The newfound friends quickly rebuild the ruins before the errant student and classmates reunite. The appealing acrylic illustrations are painterly and impressively atmospheric, and exhibit a strong command of spot lighting; fans of the previous field-trip story will be pleased to see allusions to it, including character cameos and a glimpse of the space bus.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2020

(2) K-3 Henry and Bea are best friends until, seemingly for no reason, Henry withdraws. "What did I do?" Bea asks. "Just leave me alone," Henry answers. Finally, on a field trip Bea discovers the reason--Henry's beloved cat has died. Bagley (Boats for Papa) controls pacing and tempo through a mix of vignettes and full-bleed spreads. A welcome addition to books about grief; believable and affirming in its acknowledgment of friendship's ups and downs.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2019

(1) K-3 In this playful wordless book, spacesuit-clad students arrive on the moon for a field trip. One child hangs back, finds a hidden spot to draw...and falls asleep. Stranded but self-possessed, the student soon has company: one-eyed moon creatures with whom the child shares some crayons. This sly but easy-to-follow linear narrative is told through a well-paced mix of panels and full- and double-page illustrations, with highly effective pops of color.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2019

(2) K-3 In Flight School, Penguin left the South Pole to chase his dream of flying. Here, Penguin misses his old pals and heads home, eager to introduce his colony to the joys of flying. Their reluctance grounds Penguin's enthusiasm until he realizes that he must be true to himself, even if it means being different from his friends. Judge's upbeat pencil and watercolor illustrations are as energetic as her main character.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(2) 4-6 Six months ago, evil interdimensional aliens called the Old Ones kidnapped Nikola's father (A Problematic Paradox). Now Nikola has settled into her new life at the Plaskington International Laboratory School of Scientific Research and Technological Advancement, alongside parahuman classmates and fellow uber-intelligent humans. Sappingfield balances the heavy stuff with plenty of humor, dishing up inventive sci-fi fare with a whopping side of silliness

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2019

(3) 1-3 Illustrated by Steve Björkman. Twitch the squirrel returns in his third book, this time wreaking havoc at the science museum. On the advice of science-savvy classroom geckos, Twitch stows away on a field-trip bus. Once at the museum, he faces dangers such as animatronic dinosaurs, a revolving postcard display rack, a remote-control Mars Rover model, a Foucault pendulum, and more--with hilarious results. Plentiful black-and-white illustrations depict the mayhem.

Reviewer: Gail Hedges

(3) YA Seventeen-year-old introvert Tom's misgivings about his school trip to Costa Rica seem justified when the plane they're on crashes, killing everyone but Tom and a handful of classmates. Interpersonal dynamics combined with a richly drawn, dangerous landscape make for a suspenseful and emotionally intense survival narrative.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(3) K-3 The titular half-shark, half-dog pet (Shark Dog!) is back and making his child's ordinary school nature trip way more interesting. While his curiosity may get the better of him, Shark Dog's got a nose for helping: he rescues a distressed bear cub and shows lost class members their way home. Adamson's pencil and watercolor illustrations help ground this quirky animal hero.

Reviewer: Kari Allen

(3) 1-3 Magic School Bus Rides Again series. Keesha is applying to astronaut camp, so a trip into space on the Magic School Bus to fix a satellite sounds perfect. Disaster strikes, though, when Keesha tries to take a selfie for her application and accidentally bumps the satellite out of orbit. The latest episode in the rebooted series offers early-chapter-book readers humorous adventure with a good dose of STEM education. Glos.

Reviewer: Janet Dawson

(2) 4-6 A series of eerie mishaps on a school field trip strands sixth grader Ollie and her classmates near a Vermont farm exactly like the one in Ollie's book about a sinister "smiling man" and his army of terrifying, once-human scarecrows. Only two other students believe her insistence that they're in danger. This supernatural thriller is a page-turner; Ollie's journey through grief over her mother's death and into friendship makes it memorable.

Reviewer: Sarah Berman | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2018

(4) K-3 Rodale Kids Curious Readers: Dealing with Feelings series. Illustrated by Hilli Kushnir. A girl is thrilled to ride a roller coaster, visit the petting zoo, etc., on her field trip to the fair. Everything is happy-making until the charity bake sale, where her peanut allergy prevents her from partaking. No matter: she can still enjoy the satisfaction of giving. The easy-reader story, with its "Dealing with Feelings" message and somewhat static digitally-colored pencil illustrations, is reassuring if a little bland.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(3) 4-6 Tally, whose classmates are tired of her superior-seeming attempts to help others, navigates awkward seventh-grade dynamics on a class trip to Washington, DC. Signs of a classmate's eating disorder force her to consider interfering despite others' annoyance. Dee nails the voice and characterization of preteens trying to find their place in the social order. Eating disorder resources are appended.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(3) YA After being kicked out of ballet school for not meeting expectations, thirteen-year-old British girl Mouse reluctantly attends a ski trip in the French Alps. With a cute boy named Jack, new friends, a French pop star, and a trio of mean girls, the trip is more eventful than Mouse ever imagined. Mouse's and Jack's alternating perspectives capture the heady excitement of tween crushes, and the side characters are entertaining and authentic.

Reviewer: Mariko Turk

(3) 4-6 Unicorn Rescue Society series. Illustrated by Hatem Aly. Created by Jesse Casey, Adam Gidwitz, and Chris Smith. This collaboratively created series--told through the two newest members of a worldwide society of misfits dedicated to saving mythical creatures--is witty, fast-paced, hilarious, and great fun. Starring upper-elementary-age New Jersey kids Elliot and Uchenna, each book focuses on a different creature in need of protection. Abundant black-and-white drawings spotlight the zany characters and add to the laughs. Review covers these Unicorn Rescue Society titles: The Basque Dragon, The Creature of the Pines, and Sasquatch and the Muckleshoot.

Reviewer: Pam Yosca

(3) 4-6 Survivor Diaries series. When twelve-year-old twins Ashley and Ryan are caught in an avalanche on a skiing trip in Wyoming's Grand Teton Mountains, Ashley's quick-thinking and instinctual decision-making help them survive. On a sixth-grade geocaching field trip in New Mexico, former best friends Jen and Martin must rely on each other when they're separated from their class during a dust storm. These well-paced and easy-to-read wilderness stories integrate real survival techniques; region-specific tips are also appended. Review covers these Survivor Diaries titles: Avalanche! and Dust Storm!.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan

(3) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. On a school trip to the natural history museum, Kimmy, who loves science and dinosaurs, is silenced when her male classmate scoffs, "Girls aren't scientists." With support from teacher Mr. Tiffin and plenty of inspiring evidence to the contrary, Kimmy finds her voice. In Karas's friendly gouache and pencil illustrations, the class wanders grand halls and awe-inspiring fossil displays as the drama unfolds.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford

(4) 4-6 Clairvoyant twins Caitlyn and Cassie haven't returned to San Antonio since they moved away, but now their class is headed there on a field trip. The sisters' visions make them uneasy as they sense danger ahead, even if they can't see exactly what the future portends. Plenty of twists and turns will surprise tween readers in this satisfying if slightly overwrought series finale.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(3) 1-3 Stepping Stone: Isadora Moon series. While on a field trip to the ballet, Isadora loses her magical stuffed bunny. Her search brings Isadora face-to-face with her idol, Tatiana Tutu--who happens to need an understudy for the show. Pink-accented grayscale illustrations play up the humorous contrast between half-fairy, half-vampire Isadora's wacky family and her human school friends, and they communicate Isadora's total comfort in being her one-of-a-kind self.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher

(2) YA Rivers's unsettling second-person-perspective novel immerses readers in the experience of sixteen-year-old protagonist Elyse, flying home from a school trip in Paris when the plane terrifyingly crashes into a mountain. The rest of the story has an increasingly disorienting, dreamlike feel as Elyse and the only other survivor, her longtime crush Josh, recover in Wyoming. As Elyse less-than-lucidly wrestling with grief and her sanity, readers will ruminate on loss, fate, and death.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2019