Baby Animals of the Seashore

May 1, 2011
Grades K-3 Who doesnt love adorable baby animals? The large, close-up photos of young animals both on the covers and interiors of these books in the Natures Baby Animals series are irresistibly cute. The text, although less pleasing to the eye, stays focused and gives just the right amount of interesting information. Each book begins by introducing the relevant environment. Subsequent spreads are devoted to a wide range of baby animals, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and crustaceans. Baby Animals of the Seashore covers horseshoe crab larvae, king penguin chicks, harbor seal pups, and so on. One quibble: in such short books, the amount of front and back matter feels a bit excessive. For example, each book devotes an entire page at the beginning to just three or four Words to Know and separate pages at the end to listing related books and websites. The front matter also includes a table of contents, and each book has a brief index.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2011
After a very basic introduction to the title ecosystem, each of these easy-to-read books profiles eight baby animals that live there. Double-page spreads explore birth, newborn abilities, diet, and special features or traits. Though the texts can be vague and incomplete, the clear, bright photographs help convey some of the information. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind.

(Copyright 2011 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)