We LOVE Animal Books!

Who doesn't love a new book about animals? Here's a bunch just out that will inspire you to look closer at footprints, animal babies, and the news.

theme: animals, adaptations, animal families

Whose Footprint Is That?
By Darrin Lunde; illus. by Kelsey Oseid
32 pages; ages 3-7
Charlesbridge, 2019

Whose footprint is that?

We see a print made by two pointy toes – pointy toes belonging to a mountain goat. Later, prints left by flamingos, dinosaurs, a snake. Wait! Snakes don’t have feet!

What I like about this book: It’s a simple, straightforward introduction to the kinds of footprints animals leave behind – along with more information about why the footprint looks the way it does. I like the “who left this footprint” mystery before the animal reveal. And I really like the kinds of footprints people can leave, depending on their footwear.

We Love Babies!
by  Jill Esbaum
40 pages; ages 2-5
National Geographic Children’s Books, 2019

Big or tiny, fast or s-l-o-w…..

It doesn’t matter whether the animal baby is striped, spotted, hard-shelled, or featherless – this photo-packed book captures the cuteness of baby animals.

What I like about this book: If you read the text without stopping to – wait! isn’t that just the cutest little jerboa? Ok, back to the words: if you read the text all the way through you realize it’s a fun poem about fur, feathers, beaks and bills. There are plenty of action words, and plenty of photos showing babies climbing and hanging and bouncing around. Every now and then the cheerleading squad shows up to lead a chant (we love babies! yes, we do!). I also like that the back spread identifies each animal baby and provides a special name that the baby is called. Did you know that a baby alpaca is called a cria?

So Cute! Koalas
by Crispin Boyer
32 pages; ages 3-7
National Geographic Children’s Books, 2019

Koalas may look like teddy bears, but they aren’t bears. They are marsupials that live in Australia and spend their days in the treetops, grazing on eucalyptus leaves.

What I like about this book: This book is brimming with cuteness, from the engaging photos to the breezy text that describes koala lives. There are text-boxes with lots of extra info, such as the one that tells what koalas do when a forest fire burns their habitat.

Beyond the Books:

Go on a Footprint Hike. The best places to find footprints are on fresh snow or in mud. You might find some familiar animal tracks (cats, dogs, squirrels, birds) and some interesting human tracks. Check out this guide for help, or pick up a copy of a field guide to animal tracks.

What makes baby animals so cute? Look at these photos of baby animals and see if you can find some common features that make baby animal faces so appealing.

Koalas are in danger from the wildfires in Australia, and rescuers are using specially trained “sniffer dogs” to help rescue koalas trapped by the fires. Read more here and here.

Today we're joining other book bloggers over at Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copies provided by the publishers.