Whooo knew? Owls are awesome.
Everything you always wanted to know about owls, from their peculiar eating habits to their unique vision, hearing, and how they raise a family.
Transcending the usual clichés we all know about owls—“the unforgettable call. The glowing eyes. The fierce beak”—this elegantly designed picture book skillfully reveals the diversity and variety intrinsic to the order. High-quality, detailed photos of a number of different species of owl are thoughtfully juxtaposed with pertinent questions, scientific information, and a cartoon great horned owl who provides humorous “Whooo Knew?” factoids. The power of this fascinating predator really comes across in the superb color photos of owls snatching and swallowing prey, vomiting up pellets, spinning their heads (yes they can do this because they have 14 neck vertebrae!), and engaging in other characteristic behavior. Each double-page spread asks a pertinent question: “What’s for dinner?”; “How do owls hunt?”; “Do owls puke?” (no, they just regurgitate pellets); “Do owls sleep all day?”; “Do owls see in the dark?”; “What good are feathers?”; “What do owl babies do?” Ever wondered what owl tufts are for? (They’re not ears but mood indicators.) There is an environmental message embedded in the book, and a section on building owl-friendly habitat offers suggestions for how readers can help. Backmatter features a brief primer on owl anatomy, instructions on how to dissect an owl pellet, and a glossary. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-22.75-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Whooo knew? Owls are awesome. (Informational picture book. 6-10)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4788-6962-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Reycraft Books
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere.
This book is buzzing with trivia.
Follow a swarm of bees as they leave a beekeeper’s apiary in search of a new home. As the scout bees traverse the fields, readers are provided with a potpourri of facts and statements about bees. The information is scattered—much like the scout bees—and as a result, both the nominal plot and informational content are tissue-thin. There are some interesting facts throughout the book, but many pieces of trivia are too, well trivial, to prove useful. For example, as the bees travel, readers learn that “onion flowers are round and fluffy” and “fennel is a plant that is used in cooking.” Other facts are oversimplified and as a result are not accurate. For example, monofloral honey is defined as “made by bees who visit just one kind of flower” with no acknowledgment of the fact that bees may range widely, and swarm activity is described as a springtime event, when it can also occur in summer and early fall. The information in the book, such as species identification and measurement units, is directed toward British readers. The flat, thin-lined artwork does little to enhance the story, but an “I spy” game challenging readers to find a specific bee throughout is amusing.
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere. (Informational picture book. 8-10)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-500-65265-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A quick flight but a blast from first to last.
A charged-up roundup of astro-facts.
Having previously explored everything awesome about both dinosaurs (2019) and sharks (2020), Lowery now heads out along a well-traveled route, taking readers from the Big Bang through a planet-by-planet tour of the solar system and then through a selection of space-exploration highlights. The survey isn’t unique, but Lowery does pour on the gosh-wow by filling each hand-lettered, poster-style spread with emphatic colors and graphics. He also goes for the awesome in his selection of facts—so that readers get nothing about Newton’s laws of motion, for instance, but will come away knowing that just 65 years separate the Wright brothers’ flight and the first moon landing. They’ll also learn that space is silent but smells like burned steak (according to astronaut Chris Hadfield), that thanks to microgravity no one snores on the International Space Station, and that Buzz Aldrin was the first man on the moon…to use the bathroom. And, along with a set of forgettable space jokes (OK, one: “Why did the carnivore eat the shooting star?” “Because it was meteor”), the backmatter features drawing instructions for budding space artists and a short but choice reading list. Nods to Katherine Johnson and NASA’s other African American “computers” as well as astronomer Vera Rubin give women a solid presence in the otherwise male and largely White cast of humans. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A quick flight but a blast from first to last. (Informational picture book. 7-10)Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-338-35974-9
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
