Review by Booklist Review
K^-Gr. 2. Holub, who took on cats and dogs in her previous books in the Dial Easy-to-Read series, follows a similar format as she introduces horses in one volume and rabbits and other small pets, such as hamsters, in another. Presented in a question-and-answer format, the text is both interesting and informative. What are baby and adult horses called? Is a pony a horse? Are horses smart? These are just a few of the questions answered in an easy-to-read style. Rabbits may be a more useful choice as it features animals children are more likely to have as pets. It delineates the differences between hamsters, gerbils, and guinea pigs and describes the way the small animals eat, move, play, and socialize. Both books have a bright, appealing format that combines jaunty original art and well-chosen photos. Ilene Cooper
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-3-Using a question-and-answer format, Rabbits discusses the different traits and behaviors of rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, and gerbils. While all are rodents, each one has its own peculiarities. Horses does the same for horses and ponies. Charming, full-color photographs and drawings, especially those depicting the animals interacting with humans, mostly children, enhance the large-type texts. A winning combination of tightly written narrative, age-appropriate vocabulary, and worthy illustrations guarantees that independent readers will enjoy these titles.-Pamela K. Bomboy, Chesterfield County Public Schools, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
These well-designed, informative books entice early readers with short, direct sentences and attractive color photos and illustrations. The brisk question-and-answer format provides nourishing fodder for young readers while piquing interest intelligently: why horses wear shoes, why hamsters have cheek pouches, how rabbit leg structure determines patterns of movement. [Review covers these Dial Easy-to-Read titles: [cf2]Why Do Horses Neigh?[cf1] and [cf2]Why Do Rabbits Hop?[cf1].] From HORN BOOK Fall 2003, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Using the same question-and-answer format as her previous entries in this easy reader series, Holub (Why Do Horses Neigh?, above, etc.) offers some basic information about rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, and gerbils. After a couple of introductory pages detailing what the creatures have in common, the first half of the work focuses on rabbits' appearance and behavior, and the second half concentrates on the other animals. The author includes some interesting facts, especially about rabbit behavior, but the structure causes some repetition, for example, in the description of number of babies born to each type of animal and the type of toys preferred. Each page begins with a leading question in purple type, followed by an answer and further additional information. The short sentences are presented in large type set off by lots of white space, with parenthetical pronunciation guides for difficult terms. This feature is not consistently utilized, however, as pronunciations are not given for guinea, gerbil, and Guiana. Attractive full-color photographs, often in the knock-out format against a white background popularized by DK, are combined with amusing watercolor and ink illustrations to create a pleasingly varied presentation. The wider topic with this format does not work quite as well as the other volumes in Holub's series, but the newly fluent reader interested in furry little critters will still find this an interesting and informational read. (Easy reader/nonfiction. 6-9)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
