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So You Want To Be A Zookeeper
So You Want To Be A Zookeeper by Linda Soules is an engaging and informative nonfiction book that gives young readers an honest look at a career many children dream about. Rather than presenting zookeeping as simply spending time with animals, Soules explains that the profession requires scientific knowledge, patience, responsibility, and dedication. Written for readers ages 10–14, the book follows the daily work of a zookeeper, including early-morning feeding rounds, habitat cleaning, health checks, behavioral observations, enrichment activities, and detailed record-keeping.
I loved the way the book explains the science behind animal care in clear, age-appropriate language. Readers learn how keepers recognize signs of stress or illness in animals that cannot describe how they feel. They also discover how carefully prepared diets, positive-reinforcement training, and enrichment activities help animals remain physically and mentally healthy. Soules shows that successful zookeepers must be observant, trustworthy, physically capable, and willing to work in difficult weather and during unsociable hours.
The book also broadens readers’ understanding of modern zoos by showing their important role in wildlife conservation. Zookeepers work alongside veterinarians, nutritionists, biologists, and conservation specialists to protect endangered species, support breeding programs, conduct research, and educate the public. Soules does not avoid the emotional challenges of the profession, including caring for sick or aging animals and coping with their loss. This honesty makes the book more meaningful because it respects young readers enough to show both the rewards and the difficulties of the job.
Colorful, detailed illustrations help bring the animals, habitats, tools, and daily routines to life. The pictures complement the straightforward writing and make the information easy to understand without oversimplifying it. So You Want To Be A Zookeeper is an excellent introduction to animal-care and conservation careers. It is highly recommended for animal lovers, curious young scientists, and any child who has ever wondered what happens behind the scenes at a zoo.
Pages: 38 | ASIN : B0GX34T2GW
So You Want To Be A Veterinarian
Linda Soules’s So You Want To Be A Veterinarian is an engaging and informative career guide for children ages ten to fourteen. The book introduces veterinary medicine through its central challenge: animal patients cannot explain where they hurt or describe their symptoms. Veterinarians must therefore act as doctors, detectives, and animal translators, using scientific knowledge, careful observation, diagnostic tests, and conversations with animal caregivers to discover what is wrong. Soules explains these ideas clearly without talking down to young readers.
The book is honest about the difficult parts of the profession. Veterinarians may work long hours, handle frightened or powerful animals, deliver upsetting news, and face medical problems they cannot solve. At the same time, the book includes humorous stories, surprising animal facts, and colorful illustrations that keep the subject enjoyable. Brief biographies of notable figures such as James Herriot, Aleen Cust, and Temple Grandin add inspiration, while the glossary, reading suggestions, organizations, and practical activities give interested children useful ways to begin exploring the field.
The book’s strength is its detailed look at the many forms veterinary work can take. Readers learn about veterinarians who care for household pets, farm animals, zoo animals, exotic species, and wildlife. The book also introduces less familiar career paths in research, pathology, public health, and specialized fields such as cardiology and dermatology. Descriptions of physical examinations, imaging, laboratory work, surgery, emergency care, and unusual veterinary tools help readers understand the skill and training required to treat many different species.
So You Want To Be A Veterinarian is a well-researched, appealing, and realistic introduction to veterinary medicine. It shows that loving animals is important, but success also requires compassion, emotional courage, scientific accuracy, physical stamina, and a willingness to keep learning. By presenting both the rewards and the challenges of the work, Soules helps children decide whether veterinary medicine might be right for them. This book is highly recommended for young animal lovers, as well as for parents and educators seeking a thoughtful career resource.
Pages: 38 | ASIN : B0GX32267V
So You Want To Be A Doctor
So You Want To Be A Doctor by Linda Soules is a smart and engaging career guide for kids who are curious about medicine and want to know what being a doctor is really like. The book makes a great comparison between doctors and detectives, showing how physicians study symptoms, ask questions, and piece together clues to figure out what’s going on inside the body. It introduces young readers to the science behind the profession, from body systems and diagnosis to the tools doctors use every day, while keeping the information clear and approachable.
What makes this book stand out to me is that it doesn’t make medicine look easy or glamorous. Soules is honest about the years of school, the long hours, the pressure, and the emotional weight that comes with caring for people. At the same time, she also shows why the work can be so rewarding. Kids get a real sense of what happens during hospital rounds, how doctors work with nurses and specialists, and how different fields like pediatrics, emergency medicine, surgery, oncology, and research all play a role in healthcare.
The book’s tone is encouraging without talking down to its readers, which is perfect for older kids and young teens who are starting to think seriously about the future. I liked how it focuses not only on knowledge and skill, but also on compassion, teamwork, and emotional intelligence. Doctors don’t just solve medical puzzles, they support patients and families through scary, uncertain moments. That human side gives the book a lot of warmth and makes the profession feel meaningful instead of distant. The illustrations help make the more complex ideas easier to understand, and the fun facts, history pieces, and practical suggestions give curious readers plenty to explore.
Soules also does a wonderful job showing that good medicine isn’t only about tests, tools, and diagnoses. One of the book’s most memorable lines says, “The doctor who listens carefully, who explains clearly, who makes the patient feel heard and cared for – is practicing medicine at its fullest.” That idea gives the book a lot of heart and reminds young readers that compassion is just as important as knowledge.
So You Want To Be A Doctor is informative, motivating, and realistic, making it a strong choice for science-loving kids who think they might want a future in medicine. It’s especially well-suited for readers around 10 to 14, though slightly older kids may get even more out of its details and behind-the-scenes look at the medical world.
Pages: 38 | ASIN : B0GXH1FLS8
A Symbol Of New Beginnings
Lili Naghdi Author Interview
On Loving follows Rose who must deal with a storm of emotional chaos involving family, secrets and another man. What was the source of inspiration for the journey that Rose goes on in this book?
As a family physician, I’ve had a true chance to work with different people, men or women, at different stages of their lives and this gave me a chance to get more familiar with humans’ emotional changes and the way they affect people’s lives. People that I’ve come to know and worked with always inspire me. An important lesson I’ve learned during all these years of practicing was that self-awareness and self-scrutiny are the hardest tasks to get through in life and people who have the chance to achieve them are, indeed, the luckiest people alive. Rose is an accomplished woman, modern and respected. A woman with a good career and education who has a wealthy family with all the possibilities in front of her, but she is still missing something, and she doesn’t feel complete. She needs to know her roots and she needs to go through her personal growth to become satisfied with herself. Falling in love and what comes next gives her this opportunity to know herself, her strengths, her weaknesses and how to overcome her fears and open her heart to embrace her life at every stage of it. She learns that being a woman is a privilege and something to be proud of.
Rose is an intriguing and thoroughly developed character. What were some driving ideals behind her character?
“Rose”, a symbol of new beginnings, hope and resilience, was the name I chose for this main female character. The year is 1972 and the world is changing. She is a modern and educated woman with the respect for her fellow human beings. She is a strong-willed character, but weak and fragile at the same time during the challenges she faces while taking many steps of her love-driven life journey. As in real life, being a professional particularly being a physician, doesn’t protect her from the devastating and destroying effects of tragedies she endures in her turbulent life. She is a human being with all the flaws and faults, beauties and capabilities possible. She falls, she breaks into pieces, but she stands up again and moves on in her own ways. The title is chosen in a loving memory of the late, controversial Iranian poet, Forugh Farrokhzad, who was also a modern woman with her modern ideas much ahead of her time in a society that discriminated woman and criticized her for her ideas and the way she expressed her emotions. Just like Rose, she was a free spirit who explored her emotions and as a poet she brought them to life by writing beautiful poetry that showed the delicate soul of a young woman in a modest and pure manner. I intended Rose to represent such a woman, but in another type of setting, a surgeon with a good knowledge about literature who learns how to analyze her emotional journey and connect to her inner being to become a better person.
This novel is emotional and explores the meaning of love in new ways. What were some ideas that were important for you to explore in this book?
“On Loving” is a love story, but more importantly it is a story about love itself: its psychology, its physiology and the research behind it. The concept of conditional versus unconditional love has been explored in depth in this story. Both main male characters were following their own agendas representing these two concepts from the beginning till the end. Valuing and getting to know your emotions (including love, anger, fear, jealousy, etc.) by working to achieve self-awareness was another main point I was intending to explore. Unfortunately, unknown or miscomprehended emotions can make us vulnerable in life and be the main source for depression and anxiety disorders. Rose, on the other hand, explored the real meaning of love (both of the above concepts), depression, bereavement and their inevitable consequences all through this story. Being a physician with the knowledge of these mental health issues never made her immune to these unfortunate consequences. In fact, she was missing the signs for years and this is what we see in real life of many people including health care professionals.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
I am working on a new story which is also about women’s related issues and the issues I work with as a physician. The title, “Greeting the Sun Again”, has also been chosen to honor Forugh Farrokhzad, the late Iranian poet, and it has been taken from the title of her popular and famous poem called, “I will Greet the Sun Again”. Just like “On Loving”, It is a love story twisted with literature, history and everyday life realities. I’m expecting it to be out by next year.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website
![On Loving by [Naghdi, Lili]](https://i0.wp.com/images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41UeY-pf54L.jpg?resize=289%2C462&ssl=1)
In 1972, Dr. Rose Hemmings has just finished her general surgery residency when a haunted stranger is shot in front of her in a New York City bar, and their lives become forever intertwined. And when, having been given the blessing of her adoptive father on his deathbed, Rose travels to prerevolutionary Iran to discover the past her American family kept secret from her, she finds a true Pandora’s box. It is a world both foreign and familiar, in which her primary place is as the heiress to a great tribe. In Iran, Rose will find family she never dreamed of, her own people, and a man who loves her as passionately as he does the rare black roses of his garden. She will return to the United States carrying a new secret and torn between two men: the one she loves helplessly, and the one who loves her unconditionally.
Woven throughout with Persian poetry ancient and modern, On Loving is the story of one woman’s lifetime of love and loss, of societal change in a nomadic people, and of overcoming personal challenges, including mental and physical health, to find true contentment. Above all, it is a story of love: its physiology, psychology and philosophy; the many forms it takes; its myths and truths; its challenges, its joys and its gifts.
A Journey That Can Take A Lifetime
Deborah Dolan Hunt Author Interview
Same Inside, Different Outside is a wonderful children’s book that teaches biology and promotes diversity. Why do you think this is an important message to teach children?
I’m a nursing professor and one of the courses I teach is on Culture and Cultural Concepts which has certainly changed my worldview. I thought I had a good understanding of the various cultures and their beliefs and practices, however, one of the big lessons I learned was that becoming culturally competent is a journey that can take a lifetime. This made me realize that we need to teach children at a very young age to celebrate their uniqueness yet understand how in many ways we are all very similar. As a nurse, I also believe that children need to learn about the inside and outside of their bodies and although some of the concepts may be difficult for a younger child it is never too early to start introducing concepts that can be built upon as they complete their educational journeys.
I loved the pictures in this book. What was the art direction like?
Thanks, I loved the pictures, too. I worked very closely with my illustrator. Initially, I placed notations throughout the manuscript detailing my ideas for the illustrations and where they should be placed. Xavier, of course, used his creative and artistic abilities to bring the illustrations to life. It was fun to collaborate with him on this project and we really worked well together. Final edits were completed based on the input of the Waldorf Publishing team which certainly strengthened the book.
What do you hope young readers take away from your story?
First, and foremost I hope the readers enjoy the story and want to read it over and over again. Secondly, I hope they begin to understand that although we are unique and look different on the outside we are also very similar, especially on the inside. Lastly, I hope they begin to understand how some of the major parts of their bodies work. And that skeletons are really not scary and are somewhat like superheroes because they protect all of our insides.
Will you be writing more kids books that tackle other social issues?
Yes, although I’m currently working on the second pug book I’m also in the early developmental stages of inviting the readers back to Emma’s kindergarten class where I will address other social issues that help children to understand that although in some ways we are very similar it’s okay to be different.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website | Instagram
Today is a very exciting day for Emma’s kindergarten class. Emma, Robert, and the rest of the student’s don t understand how they can all look so different on the outside, but look very similar on the inside. So Dr. Shaw is coming to visit, and she’s bringing Mr. Bones, who is a real life-size skeleton. Mr. Bones is going to help Dr. Shaw teach her lesson about the human body. Dr. Shaw has also brought a cool body screening machine with her so the children can see what their insides look like.
Same Inside, Different Outside
In order to eliminate discrimination and promote inclusion, we need to start with our children. They are the future of this world and if they can learn to love and accept each other regardless of what they look like or act like, then the world will be richer for it. Deborah Hunt takes this idea and uses it in her children’s book Same Inside Different Outside. It’s a lovely short story accompanied by equally wonderful pictures to help bring the message home. The colors are bright and the lines are soft. The story takes place in a school setting which readers should be able to connect with. This makes the message more relevant and easy to understand. It’s a clever way to deliver a sometimes difficult message to such a young audience.
The representation of a medical professional as a woman and the teacher as a man is a nice and subtle way of breaking down gendered stereotypes when it comes to careers. In traditional books teachers are women and any medical or science-related job is played by a man. In a book about acceptance, this is a key idea to get across. The children in the book are aware of their differences from each other, which is a normal discovery at their age. The doctor who is presenting to the children in the book is kind and patient with them as she goes over the parts of our bodies under our skin. As they move through the lesson the children voice their concerns and are answered honestly. This is key for the story because it also teaches readers that it is okay to ask questions and you will receive an appropriate response.
I felt like the children had a vocabulary and an understanding of body parts that were a little beyond kindergarten. But this is a minor concern that does not impact the integrity of the message.
Deborah Hunt is able to deliver a sometimes difficult message with ease in Same Inside Different Outside. The illustrations are very nice and pleasing to look at. The content isn’t difficult to understand and the message is clear and easy to digest without being muddled. Children and adults alike will find that the message this book sends is one we have been trying to share for a long time.
Pages: 32 | ISBN: 1945175702
