Children will get more from their explorations with these guides along.
Following two titles focusing on birds and rocks and minerals (both 2016, not reviewed), the Ultimate Explorer field-guide series continues to expand.
With its compact trim, strong visuals, and easy-to-use table of contents, glossary, and index, this guide is meant to accompany kids on their adventures. Color-coded circles that divide the groups into crocodilians, turtles, lizards, snakes, salamanders, and frogs and toads surround each animal’s photo. Making identification even easier, there’s a “Quick ID Guide” in the back that provides thumbnail pictures and page numbers. For each entry, readers will learn both common and Latin names, habitat, size, range, food, and some interesting facts. Labeled drawings also point out identifying features. Various double-page spreads break up the guidebook and focus on general facts, such as how snakes move, for example, and frog metamorphosis. Publishing simultaneously, Night Sky highlights the sky above us, the solar system, our galaxy, the seasonal sky, the zodiac, and 41 constellations, each of which is represented by both a star chart (labeled with named stars and each one’s brightness) and a drawing with the outline of the shape. Younger readers may not be able to take in all the information presented, but the charts are easy to read, and the history and tales presented are interesting. As with any NatGeo title, the photos are top-notch, though some of them are quite small.
Children will get more from their explorations with these guides along. (Nonfiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4263-2544-1
Page Count: 160
Publisher: National Geographic Kids
Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2016
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
Pretty but insubstantial.
Zommer surveys various bird species from around the world in this oversized (almost 14 inches tall tall) volume.
While exuberantly presented, the information is not uniformly expressed from bird to bird, which in the best cases will lead readers to seek out additional information and in the worst cases will lead to frustration. For example, on spreads that feature multiple species, the birds are not labeled. This happens again later when the author presents facts about eggs: Readers learn about camouflaged eggs, but the specific eggs are not identified, making further study extremely difficult. Other facts are misleading: A spread on “city birds” informs readers that “peregrine falcons nest on skyscrapers in New York City”—but they also nest in other large cities. In a sexist note, a peahen is identified as “unlucky” because she “has drab brown feathers” instead of flashy ones like the peacock’s. Illustrations are colorful and mostly identifiable but stylized; Zommer depicts his birds with both eyes visible at all times, even when the bird is in profile. The primary audience for the book appears to be British, as some spreads focus on European birds over their North American counterparts, such as the mute swan versus the trumpeter swan and the European robin versus the American robin. The backmatter, a seven-word glossary and an index, doesn’t provide readers with much support.
Pretty but insubstantial. (Nonfiction. 8-12)Pub Date: June 4, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-500-65151-3
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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