A mesmerizing glimpse at the miracles of the natural world.
This true story of a loggerhead turtle that has swum farther than any animal known to scientists is told by an American who has herself shattered countless records for long-distance swimming.
Cox follows the turtle from her birth on an Australian beach to the moment she was caught in a net, then rescued by a Japanese fisherman (who named her Yoshi, meaning “good luck”). The fisherman treated her wounds, fed her squid, and eventually took her to the Two Oceans Aquarium in South Africa. Yoshi stayed there for 20 years, but the curator, behaviorists, and veterinarian decided to return her to the ocean, training her for endurance then releasing her with a tracking device. That is how the world knows Yoshi traversed 22,998 miles to lay eggs on the Australian shore where her life began. Cox’s language is lovely, her descriptions helpful for young listeners. Imagining Yoshi’s early life, Cox writes that the hatchling is “just the size of a smile.” As the turtle grows, her bulk is compared to a cat, then a lion. In addition to luminous double-page spreads and delicate spot art, Jones employs stacked horizontal panels that cross the gutter to emphasize the passage of time as the swimmer progresses. Six blue circular vignettes depict the animal’s struggle to breathe when she is snagged in the net. Cox’s author’s note explains that though she speculated about some of Yoshi’s life, everything after her rescue is documented. Humans depicted are diverse. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A mesmerizing glimpse at the miracles of the natural world. (photo, map) (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-42568-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Anne Schwartz/Random
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
Another playful imagination-stretcher.
Markle invites children to picture themselves living in the homes of 11 wild animals.
As in previous entries in the series, McWilliam’s illustrations of a diverse cast of young people fancifully imitating wild creatures are paired with close-up photos of each animal in a like natural setting. The left side of one spread includes a photo of a black bear nestling in a cozy winter den, while the right side features an image of a human one cuddled up with a bear. On another spread, opposite a photo of honeybees tending to newly hatched offspring, a human “larva” lounges at ease in a honeycomb cell, game controller in hand, as insect attendants dish up goodies. A child with an eye patch reclines on an orb weaver spider’s web, while another wearing a head scarf constructs a castle in a subterranean chamber with help from mound-building termites. Markle adds simple remarks about each type of den, nest, or burrow and basic facts about its typical residents, then closes with a reassuring reminder to readers that they don’t have to live as animals do, because they will “always live where people live.” A select gallery of traditional homes, from igloo and yurt to mudhif, follows a final view of the young cast waving from a variety of differently styled windows.
Another playful imagination-stretcher. (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9781339049052
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A gleeful game for budding naturalists.
Artfully cropped animal portraits challenge viewers to guess which end they’re seeing.
In what will be a crowd-pleasing and inevitably raucous guessing game, a series of close-up stock photos invite children to call out one of the titular alternatives. A page turn reveals answers and basic facts about each creature backed up by more of the latter in a closing map and table. Some of the posers, like the tail of an okapi or the nose on a proboscis monkey, are easy enough to guess—but the moist nose on a star-nosed mole really does look like an anus, and the false “eyes” on the hind ends of a Cuyaba dwarf frog and a Promethea moth caterpillar will fool many. Better yet, Lavelle saves a kicker for the finale with a glimpse of a small parasitical pearlfish peeking out of a sea cucumber’s rear so that the answer is actually face and butt. “Animal identification can be tricky!” she concludes, noting that many of the features here function as defenses against attack: “In the animal world, sometimes your butt will save your face and your face just might save your butt!” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A gleeful game for budding naturalists. (author’s note) (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: July 11, 2023
ISBN: 9781728271170
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks eXplore
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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