Handsome textured cut-paper collages on white paper show animals of the same species that are vastly different in size. Since each pair is created to scale (1'' = 8''), viewers can make comparisons. A preface explains that various animals grew bigger or smaller over time to adapt to their habitats. Subsequent spreads depict pairs from the same species—one big, one little—while a single line of text, curving around the larger animal, introduces them: ``Both the Nile crocodile and the African chameleon live in tropical Africa.'' Most of the pairs do not inhabit the same habitat: Siamese cats and tigers are not found together, nor are fennec foxes and gray wolves. Animals include the hummingbird and ostrich, sea otter and elephant seal, capybara and deer mouse. Final pages show the animals in silhouette to scale, with a paragraph of information on each. The collages show artistic license: The Siamese cat is charcoal- colored, instead of the more common representation of buff with dark ears and tail; the capybara doesn't appear to have webbed feet; the Virginia opossum looks strangely unlike itself. The main problem is that Jenkins (Looking Down, 1995, etc.) is unclear about his audience: The opening paragraph on evolution is difficult for young readers; the rest of the book does not reinforce that paragraph for older readers and will put them off as little more than a naming or comparison game. (bibliography) (Picture book/nonfiction. 5-7)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-395-72664-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1996
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The lifecycle of the frog is succinctly summarized in this easy reader for children reading at the late first-grade level. In just one or two sentences per page, Vern details the amazing metamorphosis of the frog from egg to tadpole to adult, even injecting a little humor despite the tight word count. (“Watch out fly! Mmmm!) Large, full-color photographs on white backgrounds clearly illustrate each phase of development. Without any mention of laying eggs or fertilization, the title might be a bit misleading, but the development from black dot egg to full-grown frog is fascinating. A simple chart of the three main lifecycle steps is also included. Lifecycles are part of the standard curriculum in the early elementary grades, and this will be a welcome addition to school and public libraries, both for its informational value and as an easy reader. (Nonfiction/easy reader. 5-7)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-15-216304-2
Page Count: 20
Publisher: Green Light/Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2001
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