Fungi Grow, a review - 10.11.23

I am excited to share with you Maria Gianferrari's beautiful new nonfiction book, Fungi Grow.  Featuring gorgeous illustrations by Diana Sudyka, young readers are introduced to the amazing world of fungi.  Full of information about how they grow, spread, and help the world around them, readers will have a new appreciation of the fungi.  And don't miss the fun facts in the backmatter - fungi will surprise you!

Fungi Grow

written by Maria Gianferrari

illustrated by Diana Sudyka

published by Beach Lane Books

publishes on Oct. 17th

Full of lyrical writing, after reading Gianferrari's words, you'll be spouting fungi facts in no time at all!  As a fan of Gianferrari's works, I had to ask her about the subjects she writes about and how she decides to write the text.  For example, in this book, she writes in poetic form with action-filled words ("catapult", "plop", "spurt" are on just the first few pages!) that make the book come to life.  She also includes more scientific information on each page in smaller font.  This makes the book readable in multiple ways.  Here's what she told me:

I love to write most about the natural world and the creatures and beings that inhabit a variety of habitats and ecosystems: trees, fungi, wild animals like bobcats, coyotes or hawks—I feel awe and joy and wonder in the presence of nature, and writing about nature helps me to celebrate it and give thanks for this wonderful world we live in. 

Using concrete and vivid verbs is integral to any kind of writing I do, whether it has a more conversational tone, such as Terrific Tongues, or a lyrical one, like Fungi Grow. Strong verbs have the power to create energy and movement and to encapsulate emotion too. 

As a picture book writer, I pay particular attention to the sounds of the verbs and flow of the words, because they are meant to be read aloud, like in this section that showcases the sheer variety of mushroom shape, color, size and more:

And from dead stuff,

mushrooms erupt!

Mushrooms sprout.

Parasols pop out.

Mushrooms fan,

arc,

Spread their skirts. 

There is joy and a sense of playfulness in writing onomatopoeic words like “plop” and “poof” and reading them aloud too.

The verb grow is a powerful one—there is flow and fluidity and movement to it, and it encompasses the many different ways that fungi multiply, so the “fungi grow” refrain can contain a multitude of meanings.

I love using sidebars or layered text because the main text can be more imagistic and poetic in its expression of scientific ideas, while the layered text can explain those terms in more detail, which info-loving kids (and adults) really appreciate.

If you know Maria Gianferrari, you know she writes about a variety of topics.  I was really interested in finding out how she came upon the topic of fungi.

Well, as I mentioned above, I love to write most about the natural world and animals, both domestic and wild. I had always been intrigued by the other-worldliness of mushrooms. When I was researching Be a Tree!, illustrated by the amazing Felicita Sala), I discovered the wild and wonderful world of mycorrhizal fungi—the kind of fungi that partners with trees and other plants to share and exchange resources and I was utterly fascinated. Before that, I had only thought of mushrooms/fungi as decomposers, and I didn’t realize that they could also have these kinds of mutually beneficial relationships with plants. There is a spread that shows the so-called “wood wide web” in Be a Tree! and I wanted to dig deeper to explore and discover more about this magical kingdom which you can see here.

And here is a corresponding one in Fungi Grow where you can admire Diana Sudyka’s gorgeous art:

I learned so many fascinating things—about the power of mycelium—the “roots” of fungi (whereas mushrooms are the fruiting bodies), and how fungi can grow in all kinds environments, even extreme ones contaminated by radiation, like Chernobyl, or despite radioactivity in space (though that part didn’t make it into the book). 

And other fun-gi facts like how mycelium can be made into clothing, furniture and packing materials that are environmentally friendly and sustainable; or how mushrooms can help clean up oil spills and chemical contamination. 

Fungi is truly remarkable! I hope readers will be inspired to follow their curiosity and learn more about the field of mycology. 

I know this is a book you'll want to add to your shelves.  Maria and the publisher have generously donated a book to be given away to a reader (US addresses only).  Winner will be selected on Oct. 18th.  Enter below!

More about author, Maria Gianferrari:  Maria Gianferrari’s yard is full of fungi. From branching corals and pointy stinkhorns to smoky puffballs and colorful jack-o’-lanterns, everything’s coming up mushrooms! Someday she hopes to find some morels—she’ll even share them with a squirrel. Maria’s favorite edible mushroom is the hearty portobello. She lives in Massachusetts.

More about illustrator, Diana Sudyka:  Diana Sudyka grew up hearing stories of her grandfather, an ardent forager, bringing home chicken of the woods and maitake mushrooms for meals. Her favorite edible mushroom is the delicious morel that popped up in her yard last spring. Diana lives with her family in Evanston, Illinois.