Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Baby Animal Pop!
Nonfiction novelty book
For ages 5 to 8
National Geographic Children's Books, 2011 ISBN: 978-1426307652
Baby animals are hard to resist, and often children get their first glimpses of baby animals if they live on or visit a farm. In this special book, photos, diagrams, text, and life-size pop-up photos are brought together to teach children about five commonly seen farm animals.
When we open the book we encounter the first pop-up, which shows three little rabbits. The next page is full of information about these animals. We learn that baby rabbits are called kittens, and that they are able to leave their family when they are only four or five weeks old. Among other things, we find out what little rabbits eat, how their bodies have adapted to their environment, how rabbits and hares differ, and more.
Further along in the book a truly enormous pop-up photo shows us what a lamb looks like. Though the pop-up is big, we can see that the lamb is actually quite small, being not much bigger than a terrier such as a Jack Russell or a Scottie. On the next page, a photo shows a lamb gamboling in a field, all four of its little hooves off the ground. In the text we read about how these hooves allow sheep to cover large areas as they grave on grass and shrubs. Their split lip makes it easier to eat their food, and their four stomachs help them to digest the rather tough plant material that they eat. Their wool keeps them warm in the winter months. We also read about some famous sheep, what lambs eat, and more.
Children who like animals are going to love this unique book. They will see exactly what baby rabbits, ducks, pigs, sheep, and horses look like (including how big they are) and they will also learn all kinds of interesting facts about these animals.
