HOW DOES AN OCTOPUS SLEEP?

Sleep habits and much, much more about animals from around the world.

This Spanish import offers a lively look at 20 animal groups, each described on a double-page spread filled with information nuggets. An opening page offers advice about how to interpret these posterlike pages. Each includes similar facts: how close the animal is to human size, life expectancy, reproduction, habitat, geographical distribution, interesting facts, and, of course how, when, and how long it sleeps. Similar icons are used throughout to indicate taxonomy, scientific name, habitat, conservation status, and diet. Some of these animals, such as ants, sharks, butterflies, and bears, represent large, diverse groups, so the information is quite generalized. Others, like tree frogs, flamingos, toucans, or gorillas, are quite specific. The iconography, stylized illustrations, and occasional highlighting may help the reader organize and retain information, and the facts are intriguing—for instance, ants nap for no more than a minute, but up to 250 times a day. Unfortunately, the text is sometimes awkward, and too many facts are oversimplified—the smallest shark is 6 to 8 inches rather than, as stated, 6 feet long, and the book refers to silverback as a “species of mature male” gorilla when in fact it is a life stage. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

An attractive presentation marred by inaccuracies.