Solid, appealing nonfiction for the younger set.
Home is where the heart is…and the bears, gorillas, raccoons, rabbits, anteaters, etc.
In this interesting, information-packed book, Judge brings home for younger readers facts about the kinds of dwellings a variety of mammals live in with their young. Each class of residence is introduced by a two-page spread featuring a simple sentence that identifies homes by general concepts rather than specific types or construction methods: “A home can be hidden”; “A home can cover many miles of open country”; “A home can be built by an architect”; “A home can be crowded”; and others. Following these openers are spreads that describe, in clear, instructive, well-written paragraphs, the actual, specific kinds of homes lived in and built by two or three different, relevant animals, as in the black bears’ den under a tree, the bobcats’ nest in a rocky crevice, and the porcupines’ home in a hollow log—all examples of “hidden.” In conclusion, the book equates animals’ needs for safety and shelter with those of humans. The paintings on the introductory spreads and text pages are true, endearing winners, depicting realistic, adorable, close-knit animal families in their homes and habitats. In the backmatter, enhancing the book’s appeal and usefulness, are additional facts about each animal named in the text, a glossary, sources, and websites.
Solid, appealing nonfiction for the younger set. (Informational picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 18, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-62672-724-3
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Neal Porter/Roaring Brook
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
Another playful imagination-stretcher.
Markle invites children to picture themselves living in the homes of 11 wild animals.
As in previous entries in the series, McWilliam’s illustrations of a diverse cast of young people fancifully imitating wild creatures are paired with close-up photos of each animal in a like natural setting. The left side of one spread includes a photo of a black bear nestling in a cozy winter den, while the right side features an image of a human one cuddled up with a bear. On another spread, opposite a photo of honeybees tending to newly hatched offspring, a human “larva” lounges at ease in a honeycomb cell, game controller in hand, as insect attendants dish up goodies. A child with an eye patch reclines on an orb weaver spider’s web, while another wearing a head scarf constructs a castle in a subterranean chamber with help from mound-building termites. Markle adds simple remarks about each type of den, nest, or burrow and basic facts about its typical residents, then closes with a reassuring reminder to readers that they don’t have to live as animals do, because they will “always live where people live.” A select gallery of traditional homes, from igloo and yurt to mudhif, follows a final view of the young cast waving from a variety of differently styled windows.
Another playful imagination-stretcher. (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9781339049052
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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An arguable error of omission and definite errors of commission sink this otherwise attractive effort.
A look at the unique ways that 11 globe-spanning animal species construct their homes.
Each creature garners two double-page spreads, which Cherrix enlivens with compelling and at-times jaw-dropping facts. The trapdoor spider constructs a hidden burrow door from spider silk. Sticky threads, fanning from the entrance, vibrate “like a silent doorbell” when walked upon by unwitting insect prey. Prairie dogs expertly dig communal burrows with designated chambers for “sleeping, eating, and pooping.” The largest recorded “town” occupied “25,000 miles and housed as many as 400 million prairie dogs!” Female ants are “industrious insects” who can remove more than a ton of dirt from their colony in a year. Cathedral termites use dirt and saliva to construct solar-cooled towers 30 feet high. Sasaki’s lively pictures borrow stylistically from the animal compendiums of mid-20th-century children’s lit; endpapers and display type elegantly suggest the blues of cyanotypes and architectural blueprints. Jarringly, the lead spread cheerfully extols the prowess of the corals of the Great Barrier Reef, “the world’s largest living structure,” while ignoring its accelerating, human-abetted destruction. Calamitously, the honeybee hive is incorrectly depicted as a paper-wasps’ nest, and the text falsely states that chewed beeswax “hardens into glue to shape the hive.” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An arguable error of omission and definite errors of commission sink this otherwise attractive effort. (selected sources) (Informational picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-5625-9
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 5, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
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BOOK REVIEW
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