THE ALLIGATOR'S SMILE

Fascinating facts and playful poems about the dinosaur’s smiling cousin.

Prolific, award-winning author and poet Yolen presents 13 short descriptive poems about the alligator. Touching on topics from hunting style to parenting style, from diet to habits to physical characteristics, most are sneakily informative, and all are good fun to read aloud. “You think that gator’s dozing / In the dreamy afternoon. / You’re wrong if you’re supposing / That he’s having a sweet swoon. / He’s probably just chilly. / He can’t raise his body heat— / But with the warming of the sun, / Can lumber to his feet.” Each poem is accompanied by a paragraph or two that expands on the topic highlighted in the verse. Each is also paired with a full-page, beautiful (and sometimes scary) photograph of a gator or gators taken by Yolen’s award-winning photographer son (and frequent collaborator), Stemple. Many of the photographs were taken on a monthlong fellowship-funded trip to the Everglades. The aftermatter includes additional gator facts and a short glossary as well as websites and a few book titles for further investigation.

A splendid addition to the creators’ explorations of the natural world.