A Menagerie of Animal Books
RSSDaryl Grabarek -- School Library Journal, 09/22/2009
Books on animals of all sizes and varieties–large and small, familiar and exotic, alive and extinct–top the list of student requests every year. A number of 2009 titles boast stunning photography and lots of appeal. Here are some you can recommend with confidence.
Igor Siwanowicz offers plentiful photographs of Animals Up Close (DK; Gr 4-7) from the variegated locust and Mongolian gerbil to the Moon jellyfish and the dragon-headed cricket. Each spread in this oversize book includes a large, colorful photo; statistics on the featured creature; and informative text and captions offering details on habitats, habits, and anatomical oddities and species curiosities such as the unusual toes of the fan-fingered gecko and the axolotl’s ability to delay adulthood.
Playful and friendly, Dolphins (HarperCollins, 2009; Gr 2-5) are a joy to observe. In his book, Seymour Simon outlines what scientists already know about these social ocean mammals and their ability to communicate and locate objects through clicks, barks, and whistles. Threats to the animals and suggestions on how to ensure their protection are noted. Delightful color photos of a variety of species traveling in pods, leaping through the air, and feeding, provide readers with plenty to pore over.
Striking photographs are also a hallmark of National Geographic’s “Face To Face” series (Gr 3-7), which added several titles this year, including Michael Nichols and Elizabeth Carney’s Gorillas; Tim Laman and Cheryl Knott’s Orangutans; David Doubilet and Jennifer Hayes’s Sharks; and Yva Momatiuk and John Eastcott’s Wild Horses. (Face to Face with Penguins by Momatiuk and Eastcott is scheduled for publication in October, 2009.) Along with glossy full-page photos these books present exciting firsthand field observations and address the human and biological threats facing these animals and their environments. Each book ends with a list of “Facts at a Glance” and information on how “you can help.”
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Panda Kindergarten (Ryder) |
In Just the Right Size Nicola Davies introduces readers to some of the “small superheroes and real giants” of the animal world. While most children know of the Herculean strength of ants, in this book they will also meet nimble flyers, ceiling walkers, and astonishing leapers. Davies explores and explains some of the amazing abilities found in the animal world through clear cartoon illustrations and scientific and mathematical principals. Be sure to look for Davies’s Extreme Animals (2006) and What’s Eating You? (2007, all Candlewick; Gr 4-8), other winning titles. Extreme details the creatures that survive in inhospitable environments; What's Eating You? covers the parasites that call us dinner: ticks, lice, and mosquitos.
Many of the animals featured in the titles above can be found in The Illustrated Atlas of Wildlife (University of California Press; Gr 6 Up), discussed here in relationship to the environments they inhabit. Both researchers and browsers will find much to examine in this oversize book packed with labeled maps, clear color photos, and detailed drawings. An “Animal Factfile” arranged by class provides additional notes on the species.
Alas, the Caribbean monk seal, quagga, or great auk won’t make this or any list of living species, but they are among the 65 creatures found in Ross Piper’s Extinct Animals (Greenwood; Gr 9 Up). The author begins with some of the most recent (and presumed) disappearances, traveling back in time to “More than 50,000 Years Ago” with a discussion of the terror bird, giant hyena, and giant ape. There’s quite a bit of information on each animal and Piper delves into the many reasons for extinctions.
