by Sneed B. Collard III & illustrated by Steve Jenkins ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2000
Continuing the story of Animal Dads (1997), artist Steve Jenkins provides more striking paper collages while author Sneed Collard III pens a brief text, which includes some sophisticated biology about asexual and sexual reproduction in animals. Several unusual forms of asexual reproduction are included, for example: budding, splitting, breaking, and stacking. Sexual reproduction begins with a discussion of eggs and sperm, then shows some of the techniques animals use to attract a mate: sporting bright colors, fighting, flashing, and nest-building. The final section describes embryos developing in eggs and in the mother's womb. Usually the author provides a line of text in large type for younger readers, which is expanded in a paragraph in small type appearing elsewhere on the page. Unlike with Animal Dads, where younger children could read the illustrations, emerging readers will have more trouble here. The publishers recommend ages four through eight, but most sections would be more useful for middle-grade students, as the picture-book format will discourage browsing. Paper collages are handsome, though the layout—which poses an animal on every page, each on a different colored background, and none made to scale—is distracting. For example, the bower bird is shown page left, building his next; while page right shows two enormous night-lit fireflies, each as large as the bird. The author concludes with a glossary of science terms. Though interesting, this not as successful as past collaborations. (Nonfiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-395-95317-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2000
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by Dick King-Smith & illustrated by Jill Barton ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2001
The author of Babe, the Gallant Pig (1985) offers another winner with this tale of a bright pig and her canny young keeper “training” a spoiled princess. When Princess Penelope demands a pig for her eighth birthday, her over-indulgent father requires every pig keeper in the country to assemble with a likely porcine candidate. The princess settles on Lollipop, who turns out to be the sole possession of penniless orphan Johnny Skinner. As only Johnny can get Lollipop to sit, roll over, or poop outdoors, soon lad and pig are comfortably ensconced together in a royal stall—at least until the pig can be persuaded to respond to the Princess’s commands. It’s only the beginning of a meteoric rise for Johnny, and for Lollipop too, as the two conspire to teach the princess civilized manners, and end up great favorites of the entire royal family. Barton (Rattletrap Car, p. 504, etc.) captures Penelope’s fuming, bratty character perfectly in a generous array of line drawings, and gives Lollipop an expression of affectionate amusement that will win over readers as effortlessly as it wins over the princess and her parents. Move over, Wilbur. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: June 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-7636-1269-3
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2001
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by Rosanne Parry illustrated by Lindsay Moore ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2020
A dramatic, educational, authentic whale of a tale.
After a tsunami devastates their habitat in the Salish Sea, a young orca and her brother embark on a remarkable adventure.
Vega’s matriarchal family expects her to become a hunter and wayfinder, with her younger brother, Deneb, protecting and supporting her. Invited to guide her family to their Gathering Place to hunt salmon, Vega’s underwater miscalculations endanger them all, and an embarrassed Vega questions whether she should be a wayfinder. When the baby sister she hoped would become her life companion is stillborn, a distraught Vega carries the baby away to a special resting place, shocking her grieving family. Dispatched to find his missing sister, Deneb locates Vega in the midst of a terrible tsunami. To escape the waters polluted by shattered boats, Vega leads Deneb into unfamiliar open sea. Alone and hungry, the young siblings encounter a spectacular giant whale and travel briefly with shark-hunting orcas. Trusting her instincts and gaining emotional strength from contemplating the vastness of the sky, Vega knows she must lead her brother home and help save her surviving family. In alternating first-person voices, Vega and Deneb tell their harrowing story, engaging young readers while educating them about the marine ecosystem. Realistic black-and-white illustrations enhance the maritime setting.
A dramatic, educational, authentic whale of a tale. (maps, wildlife facts, tribes of the Salish Sea watershed, environmental and geographical information, how to help orcas, author’s note, artist’s note, resources) (Animal fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-299592-6
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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