A pleasant introduction to ocean inhabitants that will show well at storytime.
A bottlenose dolphin calf and her pod lead a lost baby whale from the shallow waters of the Great Barrier Reef to his mother in the deep open ocean.
From dawn through dusk and night to morning, Bailey follows a young dolphin on an improbable adventure. As in previous titles about the savanna, the Antarctic, and the rainforest in this appealing series, the author/illustrator portrays the waters around Australia as full of wildlife. The front endpapers identify 41 different “animals of the ocean shallows,” while the rear ones show 28 “animals of the ocean deep.” Many are also pictured in the engaging illustrations within. This is good, as child readers are likely to be more caught up in identifying the creatures than gripped by the slim story. These crisp, simple images successfully show the difference between the colorful, sunlit reef environment and the darker ocean, but they don’t quite convey the striking difference in population density. Furthermore, the blacktip reef shark and the giant moray eel, which in real life prefer the shallower waters around the reef, are pictured as deep-ocean inhabitants. Some useful facts about the dolphins are sprinkled into the narrative: They communicate in squeaks, clicks, and whistles; they work together to hunt; and, like other mammals, they breathe air and their calves drink milk.
A pleasant introduction to ocean inhabitants that will show well at storytime. (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 5, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-911171-41-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flying Eye Books
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2018
A ribald and uproarious warning to those unschooled in fishy goings-on.
Sharpson offers so-fish-ticated readers a heads up about the true terror of the seas.
The title says it all. Our unseen narrator is just fine with other animals: mammals. Reptiles. Even birds. But fish? Don’t trust them! First off, the rules always seem to change with fish. Some live in fresh water; some reside in salt water. Some have gills, while others have lungs. You can never see what they’re up to, since they hang out underwater, and they’re always eating those poor, innocent crabs. Soon, the narrator introduces readers to Jeff, a vacant-eyed yellow fish—but don’t be fooled! Jeff’s “the craftiest fish of all.” All fish are, apparently, hellbent on world domination, the narrator warns. “DON’T TRUST FISH!” Finally, at the tail end, we get a sly glimpse of our unreliable narrator. Readers needn’t be ichthyologists to appreciate Sharpson’s meticulous comic timing. (“Ships always sink at sea. They never sink on land. Isn’t that strange?”) His delightful text, filled to the brim with jokes that read aloud brilliantly, pairs perfectly with Santat’s art, which shifts between extreme realism and goofy hilarity. He also fills the book with his own clever gags (such as an image of Gilligan’s Island’s S.S. Minnow going down and a bottle of sauce labeled “Surly Chik’n Srir’racha’r”).
A ribald and uproarious warning to those unschooled in fishy goings-on. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 8, 2025
ISBN: 9780593616673
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
A solid addition to Rotner’s seasonal series. Bring on summer.
Rotner follows up her celebrations of spring and autumn with this look at all things winter.
Beginning with the signs that winter is coming—bare trees, shorter days, colder temperatures—Rotner eases readers into the season. People light fires and sing songs on the solstice, trees and plants stop growing, and shadows grow long. Ice starts to form on bodies of water and windows. When the snow flies, the fun begins—bundle up and then build forts, make snowballs and snowmen (with eyebrows!), sled, ski (nordic is pictured), skate, snowshoe, snowboard, drink hot chocolate. Animals adapt to the cold as well. “Birds grow more feathers” (there’s nothing about fluffing and air insulation) and mammals, more hair. They have to search for food, and Rotner discusses how many make or find shelter, slow down, hibernate, or go underground or underwater to stay warm. One page talks about celebrating holidays with lights and decorations. The photos show a lit menorah, an outdoor deciduous tree covered in huge Christmas bulbs, a girl next to a Chinese dragon head, a boy with lit luminarias, and some fireworks. The final spread shows signs of the season’s shift to spring. Rotner’s photos, as always, are a big draw. The children are a marvelous mix of cultures and races, and all show their clear delight with winter.
A solid addition to Rotner’s seasonal series. Bring on summer. (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-8234-3976-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Aug. 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
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