FROGS

Frogs hop into the spotlight.

Not everyone loves frogs, but herpetologist Caviedes-Solis makes a strong case for looking at them with wonder. As in other volumes in the publisher’s A Day in the Life series, this title offers an hour-by-hour look at what various species get up to all around the world—at 1 p.m., in Eastern Austria, a male moor frog seeking a partner turns bright blue (a signal to other males); at 5 p.m. in Australia, cane toads are taking a break from their long migration. But first, the book opens by smartly differentiating between commonly mistaken animals: toads vs. frogs. All toads are types of frogs, but not all frogs are toads, and by visually comparing how most look and how they lay eggs, the groundwork is established for a wide-ranging journey. Frogs, Caviedes-Solis illustrates, are pretty amazing. Flying frogs can glide through the air using membranes between fingers and toes and skin flaps on their ankles and elbows. Suriname toads reproduce in a complex underwater embrace that transfers eggs to the female’s back once she has laid them. In tandem with Rancourt’s clear, colorful explanatory illustrations, Caviedes-Solis’ stories enchant as they reveal more and more about the many ways frogs adapt and pass life on to new tadpoles. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

An impressive primer on one of nature’s most fascinating animal families.