Animal Colors What They Mean

Reviewed by: Michelle Brenner - Casco Public Library, Casco, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: February 2, 2016

Review

This non-fiction picture book is not about identifying colors, but rather how colors help animals in the wild. The nicely composed colored photographs filling the pages and the large font text will engage the early reader. The excellent quality of the cover and binding will ensure years of use in the library or classroom. There is also an added section in the back with more information and resources, including a short picture glossary and a matching activity. However, I felt that the six vocabulary words that they chose to bold on some of the pages and then include in the glossary were a bit random. I also felt that the part about flamingo chicks changing from white to pink as they grow should have included the "why" because the fact that animals can change color due to diet could be a very interesting fact for children. The book is short and colorful which makes it a good first reader but with a little more attention to detail, the teaching potential of the book would have been greater.

Overall Book Score: good