- Non-Fiction
- Ages 4–8
- Nature
The Big Book of Blooms
Part of the The Big Book of... universeOpen the collection
A big, beautifully illustrated introduction to the world's flowering plants, from giant water lilies and pitcher plants to the notorious corpse flower, with botany facts from expert consultants. The fifth title in Yuval Zommer's Big Book series.
- Best for4–8
- FormatNon-fiction
- Length64 pp
- Read aloud~26 min
The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Conversational
Tone
- Warm
- Whimsical
- Thought provoking
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
The Big Book of Blooms brings some of the most colourful, flamboyant and downright strange flowering plants on Earth to life across Yuval Zommer's oversized, whimsical spreads, with botany facts from consultants Elisa Biondi and Scott Taylor. Opening pages introduce how flowers work and how to recognise different types, before the book travels through the habitats that are home to plants such as the giant water lily, the pitcher plant and the weirdly wonderful corpse flower. Young readers discover why some blooms are brightly coloured or heavily scented, which flowers trap and eat insects, which are poisonous, and which are endangered and why. Every page is scattered with searchable details and short, memorable facts. The large format and picture-book charm make it a natural read-aloud for a four- or five-year-old, while the facts and search-and-find challenges reward older children reading alone. A browseable, returnable first reference for any budding botanist.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
Best shared aloud from around 4, when the search-and-find spreads and read-aloud facts land hardest, and read independently by curious 6–9s. A browsing-and-poring book rather than a bedtime read.
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- Best fit · 4–8
- Read aloud · 4–8
- Independent · 6–9
Prose load
Light
Visual support
Very high
Reluctant-reader friendly
Very
Read-aloud quality
Workable
Works well for
- Gift-buying
- Reluctant readers
Nothing in the book is likely to concern most parents. Safe to recommend without preview.
Bedtime suitability
2 / 5 · Better outside bedtime
Sensitive-child
5 / 5 · Good fit
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Flowers and plants
- Nature facts
- Beautiful illustrations
- Spotting book
- First reference
Avoid if
- Wants single story arc
- Prefers sparse pages
Particularly good for children who are…
- Interested in science
In the classroom
How it works in school.
A strong anchor text for a plants or living-things topic in KS1/lower KS2, with labelled facts children can use to practise retrieval and write their own reports.
A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with.
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
The plants here are anything but boring — flowers that eat insects, a bloom that smells of rotting meat, lilies big enough to sit on — and Zommer hides details to find on every spread, with facts children love to repeat.
- Being a detective
- Secret world
Why parents love it
A big, handsome book that reads aloud to a four-year-old and holds up as a fact source for a curious seven-year-old, with botany facts checked by expert consultants. The art is beautiful enough that adults enjoy it too.
- Beautiful illustrations
- Educational for adult too
- Conversation starter
About the author & illustrator
Yuval Zommer.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
If you liked this, try…
Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
Where to go next…
Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.
More like this…
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