A Gift of Dust
How Saharan Plumes Feed the Planet
Random House Children's Books · Print & ebook · May 27, 2025
From two award-winning creators comes a picture book that reveals the hidden wonders of how Saharan Dust impacts the world: from slowing a hurricane to nourishing a rainforest.
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- Who it’s for
- Lyrical verse and striking art make Saharan dust’s journey across the planet feel tangible.
- Themes
- Planetary interconnectedness, Dust nourishing ecosystems, Saharan dust and hurricanes
- Genres
- Ecosystems & Environment, Geography for Kids, Protecting the Planet
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Start with this bookAbout this book
From two award-winning creators comes a picture book that reveals the hidden wonders of how Saharan Dust impacts the world: from slowing a hurricane to nourishing a rainforest. A SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR This dust . . . of what lived once sustains what lives today and what will be born . . . tomorrow. An ancient catfish becomes a fossil, and as the lake where it lived dries up, the fossil turns to dust--but this isn't ordinary dust.
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This dust begins in Chad, West Africa, but winds carry it across the continent, over the Atlantic ocean, to nourish and replenish the Amazon rain forest and beyond. A Gift of Dust takes readers on a journey that shows just how interconnected our planet is, and how something so small can have such a huge impact. With lyrical, awe-inspiring verse based in fact, and stunning art from a Caldecott honoree, this is a story for our times.
Small Dust, Vast Reach
Lyrical verse and striking art make Saharan dust’s journey across the planet feel tangible.
Come here for
- A surprising link between an ancient fossil and the Amazon rainforest
- Earth science told through one small thing with a far-reaching impact
Expect
- Fact-based verse with a warm, reflective tone
- A picture-book view of planetary interconnection
Where it sits
| Ecosystems & Environment | 41% |
|---|---|
| Protecting the Planet | 36% |
| Geography for Kids | 31% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Rocks & Minerals
- Earth Science
- History of Science
- Authors
- Martha Brockenbrough
- Publisher
- Random House Children's Books
- Published
- May 27, 2025
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Planetary interconnectedness · Dust nourishing ecosystems · Saharan dust and hurricanes
- Reading lane
- Rocks & Minerals