Updated from the 1989 version, this reissue still has enough incredible facts and bitter cold to make readers shiver in excitement.
Can you imagine living in a place where your eyelashes freeze? But you don’t dare rub them because they might break off completely! Or did you know that polar bears have black skin under their white fur? Cobb explores the animals, plants, climate and residents of the mighty cold 49th state, Alaska. With a new typeface, bold subject headings and a tightened text, the revised design is much less cluttered than the earlier one. Plus, Lavallee’s watercolors are given a chance to shine. Colors are sharper, and the newly created space around the text allows the illustrations to open up and breathe. Cobb deftly defines scientific terms such as lichen and permafrost, while simultaneously portraying the daily life of Alaskans (although the umbrella term “Eskimo” is used instead of more specific ethnic terms). One completely new addition to the text is the section on global warming, an important and timely topic to include.
Alaska may seem like an unforgiving landscape, but set within the safety of these pages, readers can travel far and wide. (author’s note) (Informational picture book. 5-8)
