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Gr 2–6—Jenkins draws from his earlier books to craft this richly detailed work with handsome cut- and torn-paper illustrations. Numerous animal facts are organized into seven topical chapters. A few extinct animals are included. Chapters offer information about animal families, senses, predators, defenses, and extremes, and about life from an evolutionary perspective. Material within each chapter is presented in segments that average two pages in length and consist of a descriptive paragraph, several colorful illustrations that vary in siz...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

While this might look like yet another animal encyclopedia (albeit handsomer than most), chock-full of "fun facts" and better browsed than read, Jenkins has given us something much more thoughtful and coherent. Beginning with a section defining the word animal and surveying the animal kingdom as a whole (97% invertebrates--who knew?), the book then covers "Family," "Senses," "Predators," and "Defenses, a logical and comprehensive structure to give a shape to such a large topic. A section on "Animal Extremes" does provide the kind of Guinness Book facts kids love to hoard,...Log In or Sign Up to Read More