Another exploration of nature’s wonders by an author-illustrator pair who delight readers with their examples.
Collage illustrations show camouflaged animals hiding to stay alive.
This latest title by Jenkins and Page show how creatures camouflage themselves in many different environments: coral reefs; trees; flowers; forest floors; Arctic snow; leaves and vines; and rocks. Each double-page spread shows from four to seven creatures (one image shows eggs) hidden in a natural context. On the next spread, thumbnails from the previous page, silhouettes of the creatures showing size relative to a human hand or body, and a short paragraph of explanation of its camouflage techniques accompany clear images of the same creatures. The backmatter includes images of the creatures in the order shown along with a paragraph of further information, usually its size, food or feeding habits, and general location. From the crocodile fish and leafy sea dragons in coral reefs to the Namibian stone grasshopper and the marine iguana of the Galápagos, these interesting animals come from all over the world. Alas, there are no page numbers, and a couple of inaccuracies sneak in: The giant Pacific octopus is depicted as a coral-reef inhabitant when it prefers chillier waters than is typical for coral, and the trumpetfish is incorrectly indicated as inhabiting the eastern Atlantic instead of the western Atlantic. Jenkins’ torn- and cut-paper collages show remarkable artistry, and he is not the first to demonstrate this concept through artistic tools and techniques, but photographs (such as Dwight Kuhn’s in David M. Schwartz and Yael Schy’s Where in the Wild, 2007, and its sequel, Where Else in the Wild, 2009) are more convincing.
Another exploration of nature’s wonders by an author-illustrator pair who delight readers with their examples. (resources, useful search terms) (Informational picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85094-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A gleeful game for budding naturalists.
Artfully cropped animal portraits challenge viewers to guess which end they’re seeing.
In what will be a crowd-pleasing and inevitably raucous guessing game, a series of close-up stock photos invite children to call out one of the titular alternatives. A page turn reveals answers and basic facts about each creature backed up by more of the latter in a closing map and table. Some of the posers, like the tail of an okapi or the nose on a proboscis monkey, are easy enough to guess—but the moist nose on a star-nosed mole really does look like an anus, and the false “eyes” on the hind ends of a Cuyaba dwarf frog and a Promethea moth caterpillar will fool many. Better yet, Lavelle saves a kicker for the finale with a glimpse of a small parasitical pearlfish peeking out of a sea cucumber’s rear so that the answer is actually face and butt. “Animal identification can be tricky!” she concludes, noting that many of the features here function as defenses against attack: “In the animal world, sometimes your butt will save your face and your face just might save your butt!” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A gleeful game for budding naturalists. (author’s note) (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: July 11, 2023
ISBN: 9781728271170
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks eXplore
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A good introduction to observation, data, and trying again.
Cece loves asking “why” and “what if.”
Her parents encourage her, as does her science teacher, Ms. Curie (a wink to adult readers). When Cece and her best friend, Isaac, pair up for a science project, they choose zoology, brainstorming questions they might research. They decide to investigate whether dogs eat vegetables, using Cece’s schnauzer, Einstein, and the next day they head to Cece’s lab (inside her treehouse). Wearing white lab coats, the two observe their subject and then offer him different kinds of vegetables, alone and with toppings. Cece is discouraged when Einstein won’t eat them. She complains to her parents, “Maybe I’m not a real scientist after all….Our project was boring.” Just then, Einstein sniffs Cece’s dessert, leading her to try a new way to get Einstein to eat vegetables. Cece learns that “real scientists have fun finding answers too.” Harrison’s clean, bright illustrations add expression and personality to the story. Science report inserts are reminiscent of The Magic Schoolbus books, with less detail. Biracial Cece is a brown, freckled girl with curly hair; her father is white, and her mother has brown skin and long, black hair; Isaac and Ms. Curie both have pale skin and dark hair. While the book doesn’t pack a particularly strong emotional or educational punch, this endearing protagonist earns a place on the children’s STEM shelf.
A good introduction to observation, data, and trying again. (glossary) (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 19, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-249960-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
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