On Kiki's Reef

by Carol L. Malnor, Trina L. Hunner

Overview

Under the algae that carpets the swamp, near the duck who paddles in ooze, close to the turtle who takes a snooze . . . hides a gator! Still as a log, only his watchful eyes can be seen. But when gator moves, he really moves! What happens to the duck, the turtle, the egret, the deer, and the many other critters of the swamp when gator makes his move?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781584694809
Publisher:	Dawn Publications
Publication date:	01/27/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	10 MB
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Carol Malnor has used personal experiences to spark her many writing adventures. A mystical experience on a coral reef inspired her to choose the ocean as the setting for On Kiki’s Reef. In a previous book, Molly’s Organic Farm, Carol drew on her homesteading experience in Michigan’s north woods. She tapped into her passion for birding to co-author The BLUES Go Birding picture books series. As a retired teacher, Carol wrote the kind of biographies she wanted to give her students when she co-authored the Earth Heroes biographical series with her husband, Bruce. Several teacher’s guides grew out of her personal experience using Dawn Publications’ books in her classroom. Currently Carol writes a blog for teachers and parents at insideoutsidenature.com. Find her nature inspirations and workshop information on her website natureportals.com. ; Even though she is landlocked in the Western Sierra Nevadas, Trina Hunner tries to swim with sea turtles every chance she gets. Her favorite experience was looking into the eyes of a beautiful sea turtle while swimming in a coral reef in Kauai. When she isn’t swimming in the sea she enjoys biking and skiing in the mountains near her home. She lives with her husband Nikos and their two cats in Nevada City, California. Trina illustrated Molly’s Organic Farm for Dawn Publications, a book based on her experience with a homeless cat on a neighboring community farm. To see more of her artwork you can visit her website, trinahunner.com.

Editorial Reviews

2014-01-22
Hatched on a sandy shore, a green sea turtle swims to sea, makes her home in a coral reef where there are "lots of surprises," and when fully mature, returns to her home shore to lay eggs for a new generation. Without anthropomorphizing in any way, Malnor uses the turtle's experience to introduce the inhabitants of a coral reef, from the polyps who secrete the hard coral structure through fish that make their homes there to tiger sharks, the top predator in that ecosystem. Each spread offers a two-level text: a short narrative and a rhyming, summarizing couplet. Watercolor illustrations are accurate enough for easy identification—even of the author as she dives in the reef. A "Featured Creatures" appendix provides further explanation for each spread, introducing the most important inhabitants. The thumbnails in "Illustrious Additions" identify other creatures shown in the paintings. A world map shows where coral reefs can be found, and there is a page of teaching suggestions and further sources. What distinguishes this simple introduction is its breadth and accuracy. Important concepts are included but, appropriately for the age, there are no tragedies. Readers and listeners will come away with an appreciation for the complexity and interdependence of the coral reef world. Kiki's reef is the place to be. (Informational picture book. 4-9)

Kirkus Reviews