Hello, Baby Beluga

by Darrin Lunde, Patricia J. Wynne (Illustrator)

Overview

Take a trip to the Arctic with Baby Beluga.

Pre-readers and beginning readers meet the adorable and playful baby beluga whale. The questions that kids will have for the baby beluga are answered simply and clearly by the baby whale himself. Young learners discover that baby belugas stay close to their mothers and live in large pods, they eat shrimp and fish and other sea creatures, and they can make many sounds like chirps, moos, whistles, and more.

HELLO, BABY BELUGA is perfect for reading aloud at story hour and bed time.

Patricia Wynne illustrates baby beluga’s icy blue north Atlantic home and lets children get up close to these fascinating and friendly creatures.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781570917400
Publisher:	Charlesbridge
Publication date:	02/01/2011
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	273,962
Product dimensions:	8.30(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	AD370L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Darrin Lunde has worked as a mammalogist at the American Museum of Natural History and at the Smithsonian Institute. His work has brought him into contact with all kinds of animals, big and small, throughout the remote forests of South America, Africa, and Asia where he camped for months at a time to survey species diversity and to discover new species. He is the author of HELLO, BUMBLEBEE BAT, a Theodor Seuss Geisel Award Honor Book, AFTER THE KILL, and other books about animals. He lives in Washington, DC.

Editorial Reviews

PreS-Gr 1—Baby Beluga swims in the ocean while answering nine questions about himself and his kind. After describing his appearance ("I am five feet long./My skin is dark gray./It will turn white like my mother's/when I am older"), and home ("I live in the Arctic Ocean./I like cold water"), he raises his head out of the water to demonstrate how he breathes, makes sounds, and watches for enemies. Underwater, he drinks milk from his mother and swims with his pod. Single-page illustrations of Baby Beluga in an iceberg-spotted ocean appear next to sky-blue pages of questions and answers until it's time to say goodnight. The story ends with a two-page close-up of the beluga and a multicolored sunset with 10 additional facts about these whales superimposed on it. Realistic illustrations rendered in watercolor, ink, colored pencil, and pastels complement the facts. After learning about these creatures, children can sing along with Raffi as you read his Baby Beluga (Knopf, 1990).—Tanya Boudreau, Cold Lake Public Library, AB, Canada

School Library Journal

Apparently framed as interview, an unidentified voice asks questions in large bold print. Baby Beluga answers in a smaller lighter font. After asking its name (Baby Beluga), the voice inquires about the whale's physical features (five feet long with dark skin), its environment (in the Arctic Ocean), its sounds (chirps, moos and whistling), its foods (small fish and mother's milk), its fears (polar bears), and its family (a large pod of belugas). After the voice wishes the baby beluga "Good Night," a double-page spread of facts, mostly about adult belugas, provides additional information. All of the pages feature full surface blue backgrounds, apparently representing life in the ocean. The text appears on the left and large illustrations of Baby Beluga are on the right—most of these pictures give the impression that the whale is looking into a camera and smiling as he poses in different positions and situations. A simple introduction to this species of whales for young children. Reviewer: Phyllis Kennemer, Ph.D.

Children's Literature - Phyllis Kennemer

Lunde and Wynne pair up for the third time (Meet the Meerkat, 2007, etc.), here acquainting the youngest animal lovers with facts about the beluga whale. As in their previous books, the author sticks to a question-and-answer format: "Baby Beluga, how do you live in the cold water? / I have a layer of fat to keep me warm. I breathe through a hole in the top of my head." Basic questions about habitat, appearance, diet, adaptations and social behavior are answered in simple language well suited to both preschoolers and beginning readers. Back matter includes a few additional facts about belugas, including the fascinating tidbit that these whales are never fully asleep—parts of their brains take turns staying awake. While the trim size is not strikingly large, Wynne's whales fill the right-hand pages, making them easy to share with a group. Appropriate for the audience, her illustrations are accurate, just detailed enough not to overwhelm, and her characters appear to be smiling throughout. Even the topic of predation is dealt with in a relatively nonthreatening way: "Baby Beluga, what do you fear? / I am afraid of orca whales and polar bears. They try to eat me." While the artwork does show a crouching polar bear, it is a ways removed from the water and wears a neutral expression. A solid addition for the youngest naturalists. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews