WHAT ABOUT AN OCTOPUS?

An encounter between a young diver and an eight-armed sea creature touches off a deluge of octo-facts.

Catering to animal lovers who can’t get enough of these weird and fascinating creatures, Kerbel loads up the pages with easy-to-grasp information, presented in paired blocks of different type sizes. The author fetchingly observes that a drowsing octopus “might reach for something soft to cuddle” (a sponge or possibly a sea cucumber in the illustration), while a separate block labeled “FACT” in smaller type explains that octopuses have two rows of up to 280 “strong and sensitive” suckers on each arm that are “used for feeling, tasting, and gripping.” Lo’s freely drawn and brushed pictures add to the intimate overall feeling, depicting a pink, button-eyed octopus working over a sandy seabed rich with brightly colored shells and fish; the octopus often seems to dance with a snorkeler with light brown skin and pigtails who glides by overhead. Meanwhile, the author marvels infectiously at the creature’s anatomy, intelligence, and uncommon ability to change colors, skin textures, and even shape (in the case of the mimic octopus) to hunt prey or hide from predators. The lesson’s not over when the time comes to wave “Goodbye, Octopus!”; Kerbel closes with a list of “Extra Octopus Facts.”

Enthralling fare for budding naturalists.