A visual treat.
An author/illustrator shares his favorite butterflies from around the world.
Spreads showcase one to four butterflies. The brightly colored, remarkably textured collage illustrations steal the show; “the layering of these paper collages reminded me of the scales in butterfly wings,” Valério writes in his introduction. Factual information about butterflies’ habitats, diets, wing patterns, and more are included. The book lacks a table of contents (though there is an index); its primary system of organization seems to be based on the color-coded legend that opens the book (along with spreads about a butterfly’s life cycle and body parts), showing which areas of the world the butterflies live in and what page numbers they fall on. It’s a book built for browsing, and the title underscores that it’s a collection of this author/illustrator’s personal favorites. His introduction, all about his fascination with butterflies as a child in Brazil, successfully establishes a personal connection with readers. And his sense of wonder compels the page turns: “Amazingly,” he writes at one point, “the black pattern on the underside of this butterfly’s wings looks like…it is wearing a team jersey!” It’s as if he is right there with readers, exclaiming over his delight in these creatures. Moments of humor make it all the more enjoyable: “Insects don’t read maps so some of the butterflies in this collection can be found on more than one continent.” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A visual treat. (glossary, further reading) (Informational picture book. 4-10)Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-77306-335-5
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Groundwood
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
Another playful imagination-stretcher.
Markle invites children to picture themselves living in the homes of 11 wild animals.
As in previous entries in the series, McWilliam’s illustrations of a diverse cast of young people fancifully imitating wild creatures are paired with close-up photos of each animal in a like natural setting. The left side of one spread includes a photo of a black bear nestling in a cozy winter den, while the right side features an image of a human one cuddled up with a bear. On another spread, opposite a photo of honeybees tending to newly hatched offspring, a human “larva” lounges at ease in a honeycomb cell, game controller in hand, as insect attendants dish up goodies. A child with an eye patch reclines on an orb weaver spider’s web, while another wearing a head scarf constructs a castle in a subterranean chamber with help from mound-building termites. Markle adds simple remarks about each type of den, nest, or burrow and basic facts about its typical residents, then closes with a reassuring reminder to readers that they don’t have to live as animals do, because they will “always live where people live.” A select gallery of traditional homes, from igloo and yurt to mudhif, follows a final view of the young cast waving from a variety of differently styled windows.
Another playful imagination-stretcher. (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9781339049052
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
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An arguable error of omission and definite errors of commission sink this otherwise attractive effort.
A look at the unique ways that 11 globe-spanning animal species construct their homes.
Each creature garners two double-page spreads, which Cherrix enlivens with compelling and at-times jaw-dropping facts. The trapdoor spider constructs a hidden burrow door from spider silk. Sticky threads, fanning from the entrance, vibrate “like a silent doorbell” when walked upon by unwitting insect prey. Prairie dogs expertly dig communal burrows with designated chambers for “sleeping, eating, and pooping.” The largest recorded “town” occupied “25,000 miles and housed as many as 400 million prairie dogs!” Female ants are “industrious insects” who can remove more than a ton of dirt from their colony in a year. Cathedral termites use dirt and saliva to construct solar-cooled towers 30 feet high. Sasaki’s lively pictures borrow stylistically from the animal compendiums of mid-20th-century children’s lit; endpapers and display type elegantly suggest the blues of cyanotypes and architectural blueprints. Jarringly, the lead spread cheerfully extols the prowess of the corals of the Great Barrier Reef, “the world’s largest living structure,” while ignoring its accelerating, human-abetted destruction. Calamitously, the honeybee hive is incorrectly depicted as a paper-wasps’ nest, and the text falsely states that chewed beeswax “hardens into glue to shape the hive.” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An arguable error of omission and definite errors of commission sink this otherwise attractive effort. (selected sources) (Informational picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-5625-9
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 5, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2021
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