Children's Books
Allen, J.J. and William O. Thompson. A Boy, His Grandfather, and a Lighthouse. Kennebunk, ME: ‘Scapes Me, 2003. Includes a storm, a shipwreck, and a day of lobstering.
Baldwin, Robert F. This is the Sea that Feeds Us. Nevada City, California: Dawn Publications, 1998. A rhyming story about the food web and plankton.
Bayer, Juanita and Robert. Lobsters Inside Out: A Lobster Workbook. Third Edition. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, 1999.
Brown, Joseph E. The Sea’s Harvest: The Story of Aquaculture. New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1975. History of aquaculture, 2000 BC to 1970s. Black and white photographs, upper elementary grades.
Brown, Margaret Wise and Leonard Weisgand. The Little Island. New York: Random House Children’s Books, 1946. Early elementary level.
Buss, Nancy. The Lobster and Ivy Higgins. Honesdale, PA: Caroline House, 1992. A girl wants to save the 27 pound lobster her father has in his store. Early elementary level.
Carpenter, Mimi Gregoire. What the Sea Left Behind. Camden, Maine: Down East Books, 1981.
Carrick, Carol. The Blue Lobster: A Life Cycle. New York: Dial Press, 1975. The life of a female lobster from the time she is hatched until her own eggs are mature. Upper elementary grades.
Chase, Mary Ellen. The Fishing Fleets of New England. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1961. History of the Grand Banks fisheries, with some photographs. Mostly text, for middle elementary grades.
Coggins, J. Nets Overboard: The Story of the Fishing Fleets. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1965. Boats, fishing gear, and all kinds of fish and shellfish. Upper elementary grades.
Cooper, Jason. Lobsters. Vero Beach, FL: Rourke Publications, 1996. A simple introduction to the physical characteristics, life cycle and habitat of the lobster.
Cerullo, Mary M. Sea Soup: Phytoplankton. Gardiner, Maine: Tilbury House; Portland, Maine: Gulf of Maine Aquarium, 1999. Factual science book for older elementary students.
Cerullo, Mary M. Sea Soup: Zooplankton. Gardiner, Maine: Tilbury House; Portland, Maine: Gulf of Maine Aquarium, 2001. Factual science book for older elementary students.
Cocca-Leffler, Maryann. Clams All Year. Honesdale, Pennsylvania: Boyds Mill Press, 1996.
Currier, Greg. The Colors of Lobstering. Camden, Maine: Down East Books, 2007. Many nice photos of all aspects of lobstering, including buoys.
Davies, Nicola. Oceans and Seas. Kingfisher Young Knowledge. Boston: Kingfisher, 2004. A younger elementary level science book with some good projects.
Dethier, V.G. Newberry: The Life and Times of a Maine Clam. Camden, Maine: Down East Books, 1981. Story of a clam’s life. Lengthy; for older elementary grades.
Donaldson, Julia. Tiddler: The Story Telling Fish. London: Alison Green Books, 2007. Younger elementary level.
Floethe, L. Fishing Around the World. New York: Scribner, 1972. Common problems of fishermen around the world. Upper elementary grades.
Fowler, Allan. Shellfish Aren’t Fish. New York: Grolier Children’s Press, 1998.
Galbraith, Ben. The Three Fishing Brothers Gruff. England: Hodder & Stoughton, 2007.
Guiberson, Brenda Z. Lobster Boat. New York: H. Hold & Co., 1993. Picture book about a day on a lobster boat. Good pictures. Ages 4-8.
Harriman, Edward. Leroy the Lobster and Crabby Crab. Camden, ME: Down East Books, 1967.
Hayes, Karel. The Amazing Journey of Lucky the Lobster Buoy. Camden, Maine: Down East Books, 2009.
Hodgkins, Fran. Between the Tides. Camden, Maine: Down East Books, 2007.
Hollenbeck, Kathleen. The Lobster’s Secret. Norwalk, CT: Soundprints, 1996. A lobster hunts for food, watches for predators, and molts. Good pictures. Ages 4-8.
Ipcar, Dahlov. Lobsterman. Camden, ME: Down East Books, 1962. Picture book about lobstering. Ages 4-8.
Kessler, Deirdre. Lobster in my Pocket. Charlottetown, PEI: Ragweed Press, 1987. The story of a little girl in a fishing village who befriends a lobster. Ages 4-8.
Kurlansky, Mark. The Cod’s Tale. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2001. An excellent picture book on the history of the cod fishery. Includes good illustrations, examples of sea shanties, and fish recipes. Ages 6-12.
Lavies, Bianca. The Atlantic Salmon. New York: Dutton’s Children’s Books, 1992. The life cycle of the salmon. Ages 8-12.
Llamas, Andreu. Mussels: Hard Shelled Mollusks. Milwaukee, Gareth Stevens Publishing, 1997.
Matteson, George. Draggermen: A Day’s Work Fishing Georges Bank. New York: Four Winds Press, 1979. Commercial fishing aboard a trawler, with good photographs. Upper elementary, middle school.
McCloskey, Robert. Burt Dow, Deep-Water Man. New York: Penguin Books, 1963. A tall tale about a Maine fisherman. Ages 4-8.
McLimans, David. Gone Fishing. New York: Walker & Company, 2008. Fish and numbers.
McMillan, Bruce. Finestkind O’Day: Lobstering in Maine. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1977. A young boy works as a sternman on a lobster boat. Nice photographs and story with lots of information. Ages 7-12.
Pallotta, Jerry. Dory Story. Watertown, Massachusetts: Charlesbridge, 2004. The food web for younger students.
Palotta, Jerry. Going Lobstering. Watertown, Massachusetts: Charlesbridge, 1990.
Rabe, Tish. Clam-I-Am. A Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library. New York: Random House, 2005. A fun look at shellfish and the beach.
Raschka, Chris. Arlene Sardine. New York: Orchard Books, 1998. For older elementary students. Arlene gets her wish to be packed as a sardine, first dying on the deck of the boat.
Schaefer, Lola. Lobsters. Chicago: Heineman Library, 2002. Basic introduction to lobsters’ physical characteristics, habitat, diet, and activities. Easy text, chapter, glossary. Good introduction to chapter books for young elementary readers.
Skogan, Joan. The Good Companion. Custer, Washington: Orca Book Publishers, 1998. Older elementary/middle school story about a fishing boat.
Sloat, Teri. There was an Old Lady who Swallowed a Trout. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1998. A fishy variation of the old lady who swallowed the fly. Illustrates the food chain.
Tate, Suzanne. Pearlie Oyster: A Tale of an Amazing Oyster. Manteo, North Carolina: Nags Head Art, Inc., 2005.
Verrier, Suzy. Titus Tidewater. Camden, Me: Downeast Books, 1970. A lobster picture book. Ages 4-8.
Weiner, Sandra. I Want to be a Fisherman. New York: Macmillan, 1978. A little girl wants to follow in her father’s footsteps as a Long Island trap fisherman. Ages 6-10.