Synopses & Reviews
Dearand#160;axolotl: Why do you have feathers growing out of your head? Axolotl: They aren't feathersand#8212;they're gills! They let me breathe underwater. Let's face it. Even as babies, we humans pay close attention to faces. Observing another person's features and expressions tells us whether they are happy, angry, excited, or sad. And when we look at an animal, it's hard not to imagine that its face is communicating human feelings. This isn't true, of course. Squinty eyes, an upturned mouth, or another odd expression is probably there because, in some way, it helps that animal survive. and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Packed with many cooland#160;facts and visuals on where certain animals live and what they eat, this book capturesand#160;twenty-fiveand#160;humorousand#8212;and very trueand#8212;explanations of why animals look the way they do in order to exist in this world.
Review
"From a skilled team, another intriguing invitation to explore the animal world."
—Kirkus"It's a splendid introduction and a memorable read-aloud for young children."
—Booklist
Review
andquot;From a skilled team, another intriguing invitation to explore the animal world.andquot;
andmdash;Kirkus
andquot;Itand#39;s a splendid introduction and a memorable read-aloud for young children.andquot;
andmdash;Booklist
* andquot;Loaded with nuggets of information and layered in humor, this is a winning picture book that is sure to inform as well as entertain.andquot;
andmdash;School Library Journal, starred review
* andquot;Jenkinsand#39;s torn-paper creations emphasize the idea of interspecies dialogueandmdash;readers stare face to face with the animals, who happily divulge what makes them special.andquot;
andmdash;Publishers Weekly, starred review
andquot;The language of the questions is funny, varied, and irreverent, and the answers are as personable as they are compactly informative...Though the text is accessible for reading alone, the QandA format is a natural for a lively and unusual readaloudandmdash;funny voices optional but recommended.andquot;
andmdash;Bulletin
Review
"In this eye-popping book illustrated with cut- and torn-paper collages, animals leap, swim, slide, swing, and waddle. . . . This book is gorgeous and educational." -School Library Journal, starred School Library Journal, Starred
"Jenkins's cut-paper collages stand out against the white background, reinforcing the action and begging listeners to identify both the creatures and the verbs." --Horn Book Horn Book
The authors' astonishingly lifelike collages have animated an animal kingdom of reptiles, mammals and birds in books like "What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?" (which received a Caldecott Honor). Their new book is equally mesmerizing The New York Times Book Review
There's no denying that this is an extraordinarily pretty and child-friendly package Kirkus Reviews
Review
"These fascinating stories from the natural world will easily interest young people, many of whom will want to move on from the appended notes about each featured critter to more in-depth titles that further explain the mysteries of animal symbiosis."and#8212;
Booklist, starred review
"Jenkins's trademark collage illustrations continue to impress with their vibrant and stunning manipulation of cut and torn paper. The book is formatted in a block, comic-book style and is written at a level that is accessible to young browsers yet suitable for older researchers. Supplementary information about the size, habitat, and diet of each animal is included in the back matter. This title is another outstanding offering from this extraordinarily talented, wonderfully symbiotic couple."and#8212;School Library Journal, starred review"Who better than a husband and wife team to spotlight intriguing partnerships in nature...Closeups, aerial views, and vignettes of animals realistically rendered in Jenkins's trademark collage have a cinematic quality. An author note about the different types of symbiotic relationships, as well as appended pages detailing each animal's size, habitat, and diet, reinforce the book's value as a scientific introduction to the topic."and#8212;Publishers Weekly
Review
and#147;Jenkins, this time in collaboration with his wife, has created yet another eye-opening book.and#8221; School Library Journal, Starred
and#147;and#133;this array of wide eyes and open mouths will definitely have viewers responding with wide eyes and open mouths of their own.and#8221; Kirkus Reviews, Starred
and#147;This is a striking, thoughtfully created book with intriguing facts made more memorable through dynamic art.and#8221; Booklist, ALA, Starred Review
and#147;Jenkinand#8217;s cutand#150;paper collage illustrations are, as usual, ingenious and remarkable in their clarity, their several components neatly articulating the anatomy of their subjects.and#8221; The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
and#147;Steve Jenkins contributes another artistically wrought, imaginatively conceived look at the natural world.and#8221; Publishers Weekly
Review
andquot;A visually stunning book illustrated with cut paper and torn collages...This superlative illustrator has given children yet another work that educates and amazes.andquot;--School Library Journal, starred review
andquot;With his trademark cut-paper technique, Jenkins proves there may not be a texture that he canandrsquo;t mimic on the page. The high-interest marriage of animals and danger, along with large, vibrant visuals, makes this a prime candidate for group sharing, and additional details and artwork at the end will flesh out some of the finer points for older children.andquot;--Booklist
andquot;[Monkey] takes the cheesy appeal of the dangerous-animals hook and makes it thoughtful and inventive without robbing it of its melodramatic charm. . . Crisp and clean detail particularly distinguishes this batch of Jenkinsandrsquo; cut-out-collages, laid out with sharp edges against the white backgrounds, so the soft painterly striations and fibrous mottling stand out all the more.andquot;--Bulletin
Review
"An enthralling read-aloud, especially in small groups, where children can crowd up close to the images." 9/1/08 Booklist, ALA, Starred Review
and#147;[A] stunning creationand#133;with an engaging text that's wonderful for both group reading or sharing one-on-one." Kirkus Reviews
"This is good science, organized and illustrated for joyful learning." School Library Journal, Starred
Synopsis
Dear axolotl: Why do you have feathers growing out of your head? Axolotl: They aren't feathers--they're gills They let me breathe underwater.
Let's face it. Even as babies, we humans pay close attention to faces. Observing another person's features and expressions tells us whether they are happy, angry, excited, or sad. And when we look at an animal, it's hard not to imagine that its face is communicating human feelings. This isn't true, of course. Squinty eyes, an upturned mouth, or another odd expression is probably there because, in some way, it helps that animal survive. Packed with many cool facts and visuals on where certain animals live and what they eat, this book captures twenty-five humorous--and very true--explanations of why animals look the way they do in order to exist in this world.
Synopsis
The Caldecott Honor-winning duo get face-to-face with unique animals from around the world in this playful exploration of unusual animal facial features.
Synopsis
Animals move! Follow them as they swing, dance, float, leap, and slide from page to page, then learn why these animals move the way they do, from the jumping spider who dances to impress and then floats away on a thread of silk, to the roadrunner who flies, but not too far, and would rather run to catch its prey.
Illustrated in eye-popping cut- and torn-paper collages by Caldecott Honor artist Steve Jenkins, Move! is a playful introduction to motion in the animal kingdom that invites young readers to guess some of the unusual ways that animals get around.
Action is the name of the game, so Move!
Synopsis
The Caldecott honor-winning team of Steve Jenkins and Robin Page draw inspiration from graphic novels to bringand#160;symbiosis to life in this stunning nonfiction picture book.
Synopsis
How to Clean a Hippopotamus, a book about animal symbiosis, offers readers a close-up, step-by-step view of natureand#8217;s fascinating partnerships. Find out why a mongoose comes running when a warthog lies down, how a crab and an iguana help each other out, why ravens follow wolves, and more. Witness the ingenious lifestyles of some of the worldand#8217;s most unusual animal partners in this book of curious biology, a symbiotic collaboration by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page.
Synopsis
A nose for digging? Ears for seeing? Eyes that squirt blood? Explore the many amazing things animals can do with their ears, eyes, mouths, noses, feet, and tails in this beautifully illustrated interactive guessing book by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page.
Synopsis
A nose for digging? Ears for seeing? Eyes that squirt blood? Explore the many amazing things animals can do with their ears, eyes, mouths, noses, feet, and tails in this interactive guessing book, beautifully illustrated in cut-paper collage, which was awarded a Caldecott Honor.
This title has been selected as a Common Core Text Exemplar (Grades K-1, Read Aloud Informational Text).
Synopsis
When it comes to wild animals, everyone knows that there are certain things you just donandrsquo;t do. It's clearly a bad idea to tease a tiger, pull a python's tail, or bother a black widow spider. But do you know how dangerous it can be to pet a platypus, collect a cone shell, or touch a tang fish? Some creatures have developed unusual ways of protecting themselves or catching prey, and this can make them unexpectedly hazardous to your health.
In this dynamic and fascinating picture book by Steve Jenkins, you'll find out what you should never do if you encounter one of these surprisingly dangerous animals.
Synopsis
Flies are fast! They can hover, walk upside down, and use their lightning-quick reflexes to escape predators. But rainbow trout, slender lorises, and assassin bugs can catch them. Chimney swifts can, too. How do such diverse creatures manage to capture the same prey? Similar in structure to What Do You Do with a Tail Like This?, this eye-popping picture book introduces readers to a menagerie of animals that approach the same challenges in very different ways.
Synopsis
Explore unusual animal locomotion through incredible art and fascinating facts from the Caldecott Honor-winning team Steve Jenkins and Robin Page.
About the Author
Robin Page lives in Boulder, Colorado, with her husband and collaborator, Steve Jenkins, and their three children. Along with writing and illustrating childrenand#8217;s books, Steve and Robin run a graphic design studio.
Steve Jenkins has written and illustrated many nonfiction picture books for young readers, including the Caldecott Honor-winning What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? His books have been called stunning, eye-popping, inventive, gorgeous, masterful, extraordinary, playful, irresistible, compelling, engaging, accessible, glorious, and informative. He lives in Boulder, Colorado with his wife and frequent collaborator, Robin Page, and their children.