Lovely pictures and open-the-flap, spin the wheel action will attract kids to this book. The writing is excellent as far as it goes; and while the complex world does not fit perfectly into the categories the book designers created, this is still a worthwhile book. In the opening segment, the world map shows an eastern and western hemisphere with seven habitat types highlighted. These types are rainforest, savanna, ocean, freshwater, desert, polar ice, mountain and forest. One of the biggest drawbacks is that there are no further maps, only a large picture of the habitat in question and lots of animals arranged therein. So animals from various parts of the world are shown next to each other because they have similar habitats, while in fact, they would never interact. In the rainforest section, the Bengal tiger that lives in India’s mangrove forests is underneath the Scarlett macaw of South America. In the freshwater section, the Red-bellied piranha (native of the Amazon) is shown next to the Grey Heron (native of Europe). On the plus side, the section on polar ice separates the northern and southern ice groups; and the mountain and forest group is also nicely separated with a paper-folded mountain that lifts up as the page opens. Readers will enjoy this book, but will need more explanation to be thoroughly grounded. Reviewer: Amy S. Hansen; Ages 4 up.
2016-08-02
A select cast of animals—many on or under flaps and shaped pages—poses in seven characteristic habitats.Printed on sturdy stock, the painted galleries, inset flaps, spinners, and a closing pop-up mountain will stand up to the heavy use it invites. In natural settings ranging from rain forest and desert to both fresh and salt water, Wren places realistically depicted wildlife (many of the creatures looking directly at viewers) in groups that leave plenty of room for Pang's identifying labels and sometimes-arresting comments: "The slow-moving sloth visits the forest floor just once a week to do a poo"; "Don't mess with the meat-eating piranha and its razor-sharp teeth!"; "BEAVER: This little feller cuts down trees with its sharp teeth." Some of the animals, such as the giant desert hairy scorpion, the panther chameleon, and a regal tiger, are particularly memorable. Inset booklets offer further introductions to, for instance, "Bugs" or "Creatures of the Deep," and cutout windows with spinners show stages of frog and butterfly metamorphoses. Aside from a confusing use of the term "hemisphere" in the introductory spread, the information is dependable if light for the overall word count. A good start for budding naturalists, leading naturally to more populous surveys such as Jinny Johnson's Atlas of Animals (2013). (Informational pop-up book. 5-7)
