Striking photographs make this an irresistible invitation.
A trailblazing female wildlife photographer offers young readers a glimpse into a life spent traveling around the world to take pictures of animals.
The creator of numerous books about animals and animal families (Baby Animals With Their Families, 2018, etc.) now looks back at her life and work in hopes of capturing the interest of young people (especially girls) who might want to follow suit. Her conversational, first-person narrative is full of fascinating detail. Each two-page spread is a separate chapter, with a clearly headlined subject and numerous engaging images of the photographer, a white woman, at work and her animal subjects. Appropriately, she starts with her childhood and her first forays into animal photography in her backyard and at the zoo. She describes how she prepares for her photo shoots, how she lives in the field, how she finds her subjects, and how she gets to take her impressive pictures—sometimes by spending endless hours so that animals become accustomed to her, and sometimes by hiding (also for long periods). There are two chapters featuring her signature work with animal babies. Further chapters introduce two local guides (both people of color) and a scientist (who is white) without whom her work would not have been possible. A final spread talks about “giving back” and her work for animal conservation. Accessible, attractively designed, and well organized, this will have great appeal for animal lovers—and it may also prompt some to consider turning an interest into a career.
Striking photographs make this an irresistible invitation. (Q&A) (Informational picture book. 7-10)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77147-407-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Owlkids Books
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2020
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere.
This book is buzzing with trivia.
Follow a swarm of bees as they leave a beekeeper’s apiary in search of a new home. As the scout bees traverse the fields, readers are provided with a potpourri of facts and statements about bees. The information is scattered—much like the scout bees—and as a result, both the nominal plot and informational content are tissue-thin. There are some interesting facts throughout the book, but many pieces of trivia are too, well trivial, to prove useful. For example, as the bees travel, readers learn that “onion flowers are round and fluffy” and “fennel is a plant that is used in cooking.” Other facts are oversimplified and as a result are not accurate. For example, monofloral honey is defined as “made by bees who visit just one kind of flower” with no acknowledgment of the fact that bees may range widely, and swarm activity is described as a springtime event, when it can also occur in summer and early fall. The information in the book, such as species identification and measurement units, is directed toward British readers. The flat, thin-lined artwork does little to enhance the story, but an “I spy” game challenging readers to find a specific bee throughout is amusing.
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere. (Informational picture book. 8-10)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-500-65265-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A pivotal moment in a child’s life, at once stirring and authentically personal.
Before growing up to become a major figure in the civil rights movement, a boy finds a role model.
Buffing up a childhood tale told by her renowned father, Young Shelton describes how young Andrew saw scary men marching in his New Orleans neighborhood (“It sounded like they were yelling ‘Hi, Hitler!’ ”). In response to his questions, his father took him to see a newsreel of Jesse Owens (“a runner who looked like me”) triumphing in the 1936 Olympics. “Racism is a sickness,” his father tells him. “We’ve got to help folks like that.” How? “Well, you can start by just being the best person you can be,” his father replies. “It’s what you do that counts.” In James’ hazy chalk pastels, Andrew joins racially diverse playmates (including a White child with an Irish accent proudly displaying the nickel he got from his aunt as a bribe to stop playing with “those Colored boys”) in tag and other games, playing catch with his dad, sitting in the midst of a cheering crowd in the local theater’s segregated balcony, and finally visualizing himself pelting down a track alongside his new hero—“head up, back straight, eyes focused,” as a thematically repeated line has it, on the finish line. An afterword by Young Shelton explains that she retold this story, told to her many times growing up, drawing from conversations with Young and from her own research; family photos are also included. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A pivotal moment in a child’s life, at once stirring and authentically personal. (illustrator’s note) (Autobiographical picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-545-55465-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
