YOU CAN’T LAY AN EGG IF YOU’RE AN ELEPHANT

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YOU CAN’T LAY AN EGG IF YOU’RE AN ELEPHANT

Name: YOU CAN’T LAY AN EGG IF YOU’RE AN ELEPHANT
Author: Fred Ehrlich
ISBN: 978-1-59354-606-9

A BOOK ABOUT HOW ANIMALS ARE BORN

by Fred Ehrlich & illustrated by Amanda Haley ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2007

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This gentle introduction to animal birth compares the eggs and babies of small and large birds, small and large mammals, chimps and human beings. Following the same format as the author and illustrator’s You Can’t Take Your Body to a Repair Shop (2004), the informational text is interspersed with short, often silly poems that might help young listeners remember the facts. Cartoon-style illustrations, apparently pen and ink with watercolor, nicely complement the text. Unfortunately, the page showing egg sizes and colors includes a chicken egg that is far smaller than the eggs readers will have encountered in their kitchens. The others seem to be similarly reduced in size. In the section on penguins, there are contradictory statements about whether a chick is ever left alone. The chapter comparing human and chimp babies is nicely organized to demonstrate the chimp’s initial head start and the child’s later, different abilities, but the scientist whose observations led to this information is unnamed. Disappointing. (Picture book/nonfiction. 5-8)

Pub Date: June 1, 2007

ISBN: 978-1-59354-606-9

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Blue Apple

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2007

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
A BUNNY IS FUNNY
by Harriet Ziefert and Fred Ehrlich & illustrated by Todd McKie

- BOOK REVIEW
DOES A SEAL SMILE?
by Fred Ehrlich & illustrated by Emily Bolam

- BOOK REVIEW
YOU CAN’T SEE A DODO AT THE ZOO
by Fred Ehrlich & illustrated by Amanda Haley

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DECOY SAVES OPENING DAY

by Shohei Ohtani & Michael Blank ; illustrated by Fanny Liem ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 3, 2026

A charming tale of an athlete who may not steal any bases but who will certainly steal readers’ hearts.

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Ohtani, pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, teams up with Blank and Liem to tell the story of how his dog, Decoy, threw out a ceremonial first pitch.

It’s a big day! Decoy leaps “off the bed. Then back onto the bed. Then off the bed.” The enthusiastic pup heads outside to practice with his lucky baseball but is quickly distracted by squirrels (“we’ll play later!”), airplanes (“flyin’ high!”), and flowers (“smell ya soon!”). Dog and pitcher then head to the ballpark. In the locker room, Decoy high-paws Shohei’s teammates. It’s nearly time! But as Shohei prepares to warm up, Decoy realizes that he’s forgotten something important: his lucky ball. Without it, there will be “no championships, no parades, and no hot dogs!” Back home he goes, returning just in time. With Shohei at the plate, Decoy runs from the mound to his owner, rolling the ball into Shohei’s mitt for a “Striiiiike!” Related from a dog’s point of view, Ohtani and Blank’s energetic text lends the tale a sense of urgency and suspense. Liem’s illustrations capture the excitement of the first day of baseball season and the joys of locker room camaraderie, as well as Shohei and Decoy’s mutual affection—even when the ball is drenched in slobber, Shohei’s love for his pet shines through, and clearly, Decoy is focused when it matters.

A charming tale of an athlete who may not steal any bases but who will certainly steal readers’ hearts. (Picture book. 5-7)

Pub Date: Feb. 3, 2026

ISBN: 9780063460775

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Oct. 10, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS

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HENRY AND MUDGE AND THE STARRY NIGHT

From the Henry and Mudge series

by Cynthia Rylant & illustrated by Sucie Stevenson ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1998

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Rylant (Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers, 1998, etc.) slips into a sentimental mode for this latest outing of the boy and his dog, as she sends Mudge and Henry and his parents off on a camping trip. Each character is attended to, each personality sketched in a few brief words: Henry's mother is the camping veteran with outdoor savvy; Henry's father doesn't know a tent stake from a marshmallow fork, but he's got a guitar for campfire entertainment; and the principals are their usual ready-for-fun selves. There are sappy moments, e.g., after an evening of star- gazing, Rylant sends the family off to bed with: ``Everyone slept safe and sound and there were no bears, no scares. Just the clean smell of trees . . . and wonderful green dreams.'' With its nice tempo, the story is as toasty as its campfire and swaddled in Stevenson's trusty artwork. (Fiction. 6-8)