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Melissa Stewart is an American author of children's books about science and nature and a leading researcher in the field of nonfiction literature for young people. She has published more than 200 books for children as well as several books for educators.
During this period, she also worked as a freelance science writer, publishing dozens of magazine articles for children and adults. Her first book, Life without Light: A Journey to Earth's Dark Ecosystems was published in 1998 and was named a New York Public Library Best Book for Teens.
In 2000, she returned to Massachusetts and began writing articles and books full-time. Most of her early books were traditional nonfiction titles for the school and library market. Her first picture book, A Place for Butterflies, was published in 2006 and received the Green Earth Book Award. It has been revised twice and sold more than 350,000 copies. Since then, Melissa has published 25 expository literature picture books as well as traditional, browsable, and active nonfiction titles. Her books have been translated into more than a dozen languages.
She also co-authored, with educator Nancy Chesley, Perfect Pairs: Using Fiction & Nonfiction Picture Books to Teach Life Science, K-2 and Perfect Pairs: Using Fiction & Nonfiction Picture Books to Teach Life Science, Grades 3-5.
In 2012, she began researching nonfiction literature for young people and, in 2017, developed the Nonfiction Family Tree, which evolved into the 5 Kinds of Nonfiction classification system and was fully described in 5 Kinds of Nonfiction: Enriching Reading and Writing Instruction with Children's Books, co-written by educator Marlene Correia. (,) She also edited the anthology Nonfiction Writers Dig Deep: 50 Award-winning Authors Share the Secret of Engaging Writing and co-authored the Position Statement on the Role of Nonfiction Literature, K-12, which was adopted by the National Council of Teachers of English in 2023.
Her essays, articles, and op-eds on nonfiction literature and literacy have appeared in Book Links, Booklist, Children and Libraries, Knowledge Quest, Language Arts, Publishers Weekly, Reading Rockets, The Reading Teacher, School Library Connection, School Library Journal, Science, Science & Children, The Utah Journal of Literacy, and The Washington Post.
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books included Feathers: Not Just for Flying in their list of the best books of 2014.
| +Awards for Stewart's books !Year !Title !Award !Result !Ref. | ||||
| 2007 | A Place for Butterflies | Green Earth Book Award | Winner | |
| 2009 | Under the Snow | Massachusetts Book Award | Finalist | |
| 2010 | National Geographic Readers: Ants | Cybils Award for Easy Readers | Finalist | |
| A Place for Birds | Green Earth Book Award | Honor | ||
| Under the Snow | California Eureka! Book Award | Honor | ||
| Under the Snow | Charlotte Zolotow Award | Commend | ||
| 2011 | A Place for Frogs | Green Earth Book Award | Honor | |
| 2012 | A Place for Bats | American Academy of Arts and Sciences/Subaru Prize for Excellence in Science Books | Finalist | |
| Correll Book Award for Excellence in Informational Text | Winner | |||
| 2013 | A Place for Bats | Green Earth Book Award | Honor | |
| A Place for Turtles | Massachusetts Book Award | Finalist | ||
| Sigurd Olson Nature Writing Award for Children's Literature | Winner | |||
| 2014 | Beneath the Sun | Charlotte Zolotow Award | Commend | |
| Feathers: Not Just for Flying | Cybils Award for Elementary and Middle Grade | Winner | ||
| No Monkeys, No Chocolate | Cook Prize for Best STEM Picture Book | Finalist | ||
| A Place for Turtles | Green Earth Book Award | Winner | ||
| 2015 | Feathers: Not Just for Flying | Association for Library Service to Children Notable Children's Books | Selection | |
| John Burroughs Riverby Award | Winner | |||
| 2017 | Droughts | American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Prize for Excellence in Science Books | Finalist | |
| 2018 | Can an Aardvark Bark? | Colorado Book Awards | Winner | |
| Pipsqueaks, Slowpokes, and Stinkers: Celebrating Animal Underdogs | California Eureka! Book Award | Winner | ||
| Massachusetts Book Award | Honor | |||
| Pennsylvania Keystone to Reading Book Award | Finalist | |||
| SCBWI Golden Kite Award | Honor | |||
| 2019 | Seashells: More Than a Home | Cybils Award for Elementary | Finalist | |
| Pennsylvania Keystone to Reading Book Award | Finalist | |||
| 2020 | Seashells: More Than a Home | Correll Book Award for Excellence in Informational Text | Winner | |
| 2021 | Fourteen Monkeys: A Rain Forest Rhyme | California Eureka Book Award | Honor | |
| 2022 | Fourteen Monkeys: A Rain Forest Rhyme | Washington State Towner Book Award | Honor | |
| Summertime Sleepers | Association for Library Service to Children Notable Children's Books | Selection | ||
| Pennsylvania Keystone to Reading Book Award | Finalist | |||
| Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award | Honor | |||
| 2023 | Summertime Sleepers: Animals that Estivate | Oklahoma Donna Norvell Award | Winner | |
| Whale Fall: Exploring an Ocean-floor Ecosystem | American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Prize for Excellence in Science Books | Winner | ||
| 2024 | Tree Hole Homes: Daytime Dens and Nighttime Nooks | Yellowstone Jackhammer Picture Book Award | Finalist | |
| Whale Fall: Exploring an Ocean-floor Ecosystem | Association for Library Service to Children Notable Children's Books | Selection | ||
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