THE BLUES GOES EXTREME BIRDING

A band of five cartoon bluebirds travel the world in search of record-setting bird species—the fastest, best mimic, highest flying, pinkest and more. This third in a series, which began with The BLUES Go Birding Across America (2010), continues to promote bird-watching among young readers through the antics of bluebirds musicians Bing, Lulu, Uno, Eggbert and Sammi—each with identifiable characteristics and easily distinguished from the more realistic birds illustrated on the pages. Each of the dozen species is introduced in the narrative and described further through entries in a nature notebook and a field guide. “Extra Extremes” mention species that set similar records. Some of the birds may be familiar to young readers—the peregrine falcon, emperor penguin and ostrich, for instance—but others will be new. Their trip ends with a sighting of the horned sungem hummingbird in Brazil, an opportunity for the authors to promote an upcoming volume about the rain forest.  The band’s trip is mapped at the end on a world map with labeled continents; a handy list reviews the species and notes where they were sighted. The facts have been vetted by a birding expert, sources are given in the acknowledgements and birding closer to home is encouraged. This is a clever extension of the series, taking advantage of children’s interest in records and in Xtreme sports of all kinds. (Informational picture book. 5-9)