A basic biological process presented appropriately for the beginning reader.
A tadpole can hardly wait to grow up.
A frog’s life cycle is ably and appealingly presented in an early-reader format by an experienced science writer. As the tadpole grows, it continually asks its neighbor, a snail, the title question, the equivalent of “Are we there yet?” The snail patiently explains each growth stage: the egg, where the frog started; the tadpole stage, including its parts and what they are for; and the changes on the way in the future. Leaping forward, in the penultimate act, the nearly transformed frog emerges to see the sky and feel the air. It will return to the water until its tail has been absorbed and it can survive both in and out of water. The conversation between frog and snail is presented in two colors, allowing dual read-alouds. The words and sentences are simple, with plenty of repetition. Rockwell’s illustrations, created with watercolor washes and digital tools, support beginning readers and add further information. We see the frog’s changing shape and size, its environment, some of its neighbors, and even its new long tongue, catching a dragonfly prey. An illustration toward the end depicts the frog life cycle—a solid review of the material covered in the book. These simple illustrations are realistic and accurate, right down to the snail. Reading teachers will especially welcome this informative title. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A basic biological process presented appropriately for the beginning reader. (Informational early reader. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-8234-5078-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
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 simple but effective look at a keystone species.
Sea otters are the key to healthy kelp forests on the Pacific coast of North America.
There have been several recent titles for older readers about the critical role sea otters play in the coastal Pacific ecosystem. This grand, green version presents it to even younger readers and listeners, using a two-level text and vivid illustrations. Biologist Buhrman-Deever opens as if she were telling a fairy tale: “On the Pacific coast of North America, where the ocean meets the shore, there are forests that have no trees.” The treelike forms are kelp, home to numerous creatures. Two spreads show this lush underwater jungle before its king, the sea otter, is introduced. A delicate balance allows this system to flourish, but there was a time that hunting upset this balance. The writer is careful to blame not the Indigenous peoples who had always hunted the area, but “new people.” In smaller print she explains that Russian explorations spurred the development of an international fur trade. Trueman paints the scene, concentrating on an otter family threatened by formidable harpoons from an abstractly rendered person in a small boat, with a sailing ship in the distance. “People do not always understand at first the changes they cause when they take too much.” Sea urchins take over; a page turn reveals a barren landscape. Happily, the story ends well when hunting stops and the otters return…and with them, the kelp forests.
A simple but effective look at a keystone species. (further information, select bibliography, additional resources) (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 26, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-7636-8934-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020
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