ANIMALS EVERYWHERE

by Ingri & Edgar Parin d'Aulaire ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 23, 1940

This is a puzzler. It goes without saying that the pictures by this popular team are lovely, the reproduction excellent. The format -- a panorama, like some of the now inaccessible foreign ones, spread out over a goodly expanse of floor space, and on one side in full color you have fifty odd animals, from all parts of the world, with running captions telling where they are to be found, which will give the panorama value for somewhat older children, while making the recognition value for little children still good. Reverse the spread, and you get the back view of the same pictures in black and white, with the captions giving the sense of sound each animal makes, again a popular feature with fairly young children. Now here is where my question comes in. Many of the animals included are unfamiliar to small children. The relation of each animal to the climate, arctic, temperate, tropical, is not of interest to picture-book age. The captions demand some background of geographical knowledge and understanding. It is a good idea. I wish it might have been more simply carried out. Strongly made panoramas are badly needed, but the real need is for panoramas that are self-sufficient, that are simple enough to serve their own purpose, without adult intervention. I don't think this accomplishes that end. Buy and sell with care. The d'Aulaire name is good.

Pub Date: Aug. 23, 1940

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Doubleday, Doran

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1940

Categories: CHILDREN'S