Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 5-8-These series titles take readers into the wild and under the sea for up-close-and-personal overviews. Each book covers the characteristics and unique traits of the subject animals and includes colorful, awe-inspiring photos and immediate first-person narratives. Hall, a diver and filmmaker, looks at 32 species of dolphins and 6 porpoise species, examining body features, echolocation, why they jump, and their keen intelligence. Hunt mostly focuses on the polar bear, black bear, and grizzly, but also includes lesser-known species such as the moon bear and spectacled bear. Le-n looks at the socialization styles of killer whales, also known as orcas, such as whether they live in pods or solo, how they hunt, and what they eat depending on availability of food sources. All three books provide glimpses at how humans have interacted with these animals. The last chapter addresses their shrinking habitats and food supplies and how individuals can work to save the creatures. John Bonnett Wexo's "Zoobook" series (Wildlife Education) covers some of the same factual information but does not include the personal stories that this series presents.-Sandra Welzenbach, Villarreal Elementary School, San Antonio, TX (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
Despite the excellent color photographs, the lack of indexes, a table of contents, and glossaries mars the otherwise informative books. 'Sea Otters' is well written, containing complete information on the sea otter; however, 'Dolphins' is written in the first person, which detracts from the facts within the text. Bib. (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.
