Another exploration of nature’s wonders by an author-illustrator pair who delight readers with their examples.
Collage illustrations show camouflaged animals hiding to stay alive.
This latest title by Jenkins and Page show how creatures camouflage themselves in many different environments: coral reefs; trees; flowers; forest floors; Arctic snow; leaves and vines; and rocks. Each double-page spread shows from four to seven creatures (one image shows eggs) hidden in a natural context. On the next spread, thumbnails from the previous page, silhouettes of the creatures showing size relative to a human hand or body, and a short paragraph of explanation of its camouflage techniques accompany clear images of the same creatures. The backmatter includes images of the creatures in the order shown along with a paragraph of further information, usually its size, food or feeding habits, and general location. From the crocodile fish and leafy sea dragons in coral reefs to the Namibian stone grasshopper and the marine iguana of the Galápagos, these interesting animals come from all over the world. Alas, there are no page numbers, and a couple of inaccuracies sneak in: The giant Pacific octopus is depicted as a coral-reef inhabitant when it prefers chillier waters than is typical for coral, and the trumpetfish is incorrectly indicated as inhabiting the eastern Atlantic instead of the western Atlantic. Jenkins’ torn- and cut-paper collages show remarkable artistry, and he is not the first to demonstrate this concept through artistic tools and techniques, but photographs (such as Dwight Kuhn’s in David M. Schwartz and Yael Schy’s Where in the Wild, 2007, and its sequel, Where Else in the Wild, 2009) are more convincing.
Another exploration of nature’s wonders by an author-illustrator pair who delight readers with their examples. (resources, useful search terms) (Informational picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85094-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A ribald and uproarious warning to those unschooled in fishy goings-on.
Sharpson offers so-fish-ticated readers a heads up about the true terror of the seas.
The title says it all. Our unseen narrator is just fine with other animals: mammals. Reptiles. Even birds. But fish? Don’t trust them! First off, the rules always seem to change with fish. Some live in fresh water; some reside in salt water. Some have gills, while others have lungs. You can never see what they’re up to, since they hang out underwater, and they’re always eating those poor, innocent crabs. Soon, the narrator introduces readers to Jeff, a vacant-eyed yellow fish—but don’t be fooled! Jeff’s “the craftiest fish of all.” All fish are, apparently, hellbent on world domination, the narrator warns. “DON’T TRUST FISH!” Finally, at the tail end, we get a sly glimpse of our unreliable narrator. Readers needn’t be ichthyologists to appreciate Sharpson’s meticulous comic timing. (“Ships always sink at sea. They never sink on land. Isn’t that strange?”) His delightful text, filled to the brim with jokes that read aloud brilliantly, pairs perfectly with Santat’s art, which shifts between extreme realism and goofy hilarity. He also fills the book with his own clever gags (such as an image of Gilligan’s Island’s S.S. Minnow going down and a bottle of sauce labeled “Surly Chik’n Srir’racha’r”).
A ribald and uproarious warning to those unschooled in fishy goings-on. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 8, 2025
ISBN: 9780593616673
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
PERSPECTIVES
A lyrical and educational look at the water cycle.
Through many types of weather and the different seasons, water tells readers about its many forms.
“Sometimes I’m the rain cloud / and sometimes I’m the rain.” Water can make rainbows and can appear to be different colors. Water is a waterfall, a wave, an ocean swell, a frozen pond, the snow on your nose, a cloud, frost, a comet, a part of you. Throughout, Paterson’s rhyming verses evoke images of their own: “Soon the summer sun is back / and warms me with its rays. / I rise in rumbling thunderheads / like castles in the haze,” though at times word order seems to have been chosen for rhyme rather than meaning (“In fall I sink into a fog / and blanket chilly fields, / with pumpkins touched by morning frost / the harvest season yields”). Backmatter includes a diagram of the water cycle that introduces and describes each step with solid vocabulary, including “Collection” as a step in the process; “The Science Behind the Poetry,” which unpacks some of the poetic language and phrases; some water activities and explorations; conservation tips; and a list of other books from the publisher about water. Paterson’s full- and double-page–spread illustrations are just as magical as his verse, showing water in its many forms from afar and close up. Few people appear on his pages, but the vast majority of those are people of color.
A lyrical and educational look at the water cycle. (Informational picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-58469-615-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dawn Publications
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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