Volume 1 Number 7
July 28, 1995

Weird Animals.
Bobbie Kalman and Tammy Everts
Niagara-on-the-Lake: Crabtree, 1994. 32pp.
Cloth, $15.96 (ISBN 0-86505-617-X)
Paper, $7.16 (ISBN 0-86505-171-6)

Grades K - 3 / Ages 5 - 10

Review by Brian Rountree.

What kind of cows swim? What kind of fish climb trees? Which sort of dragon doesn't breathe fire, but just has really bad breath?* The answers to these questions can be found in Weird Animals, a new entry in Bobbie Kalman's Crabapples series of non-fiction `starter' books for young readers.

This entertaining book explains in a clear, simple manner how unusual body parts or habits which may seem strange are really part of the essential life of each animal. The illustrations in this volume are well-defined and the photographs focus on the central animals. The authors explain the territory some animals are restricted to (lemurs are only found in Madagascar, for example), and describe their specialised diets.

Among the sixteen weird animals covered in this book are the star-nosed mole, blue-footed booby, bonobo, and lemur. The book includes a helpful glossary (whose words in the text are in bold print) and an index. Excellent as a book to read for fun, Weird Animals will be useful for children from K to grade 7 who are looking for somewhere to start a research project.

Weird Animals will be a good purchase for any library looking for material on the more unusual animals of our planet.

Recommended.

*the manatee or ``sea cow," the mudskipper, and the Komodo dragon

Brian Rountree is a teacher-librarian in Thompson, MB and currently serves as the secretary-treasurer for the Canadian School Library Association.

Copyright © 1995 the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.

Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364

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