OVER IN THE MANGROVES

A fun spin on the popular counting rhyme “Over in the Meadow.”

“Over in the mangroves by the river in the sun, / slinks a fierce mama tiger and her little tiger one.” Losing none of the North American original’s sprightly rhythms and upbeat tone, this version shifts settings to the Sundarbans mangrove forest of India and Bangladesh. Ten animal species are introduced, among them pitta birds, crocodiles, and mud lobsters; they all then huddle beneath the overarching mangroves while a storm passes. Though most of the parental caregivers are moms, both the curlew and the seahorse are dads (“Cling, said the papa. / We cling said the nine”); it's a nicely inclusive touch and is also, as Gopal explains in her closing notes, scientifically accurate. Pawaskar gives the animals, even the honeybees and water snakes, engagingly wide googly eyes but otherwise depicts them with reasonable fidelity. In a final wordless spread, all bed down together in their swampy setting, “peaceable kingdom” style. Along with personal notes from the author and illustrator, the backmatter includes more information on each of the animals mentioned and explores the role the mangrove forest plays as both habitat and “climate helper.”

Sweetly informative.