animals

Book Review: Wow in the World, Wow in the Wild by Mindy Thomas and Guy Raz

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Based on their #1 kids podcast, Wow in the World, hosts Mindy Thomas and Guy Raz take readers on a hilarious, fact-filled, and highly illustrated journey through the animal kingdom!

Feathers, fins, fur, feet—the animal kingdom is made up of nearly 9 million known species! From flying fish to flightless birds, each living creature has a unique role to play in the life of planet Earth. In this book, Mindy Thomas and Guy Raz, hosts of the mega-popular kids’ podcast Wow in the World, will take you on a fact-filled adventure to explore the funniest and most fascinating animals known to humankind.

Sections Include:
Build your own insect!
Play hide and seek, chameleon-style!
Look for six signs you might be a fish!
And much, much more!

Featuring hilarious illustrations and filled with facts, jokes, photos, and quizzes, this book is a call to the wild kids of the world. Join us as we venture onto land and into the sky and sea to discover the WOW of Earth’s creatures, both big and small.

Pre-order on Amazon

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free e-copy from Netgalley. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

What a great book for kids! It’s like reading a comic book while learning about animals. Not only is it filled with information, but it’s funny and engaging. It also has a helpful glossary at the end.

There was a lot in here that I didn’t know. For example, did you know that 10 years ago biologists estimated that there are over 8.7 million species of animals on Earth, and we have only identified about 1.2 million species? That one tidbit alone would be a good topic for discussion.

This is my favorite type of book for children: it is fun and engaging all while they’re learning.

About the Authors

Mindy Thomas is the host of NPR’s Wow In The World, a podcast and new way for families to connect, look up, and discover the wonders in the world around them. Every episode, she and Guy Raz guide curious kids and their grown-ups away from their screens and on a journey through a combination of careful scientific research and fun.

Thomas is also the Gracie Award-winning host of the inimitable Absolutely Mindy Show. She can be heard weekday mornings on Sirius XM’s Kid’s Place Live Channel, of which Mindy served as Program Director for ten years. Mindy is known as an expert and advocate for children’s literature and independent family music. She’s proven that kid’s programming can be smart, interesting, and compelling for both children and adults without sacrificing an ounce of silliness. She talks to imaginary friends (her listeners), sends kids on incredible imaginary adventures by flushing them down her “Portal Potty,” and has the super ability to keep children and adults laughing together on their morning commutes. She has hosted live events for Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Children’s Miracle Network, and Life is Good and conducted thousands of interviews with everyone from The Muppets to Julie Andrews.

When she’s not living out her childhood dreams “playing radio,” she’s exploring the world with her husband and two curious and creative kids. She loves the outdoors, especially kayaking, hiking, and backpacking. She started an adventure club for moms called The Action Adventure Girls Club and she’s even jumped out of a plane on a skydiving adventure! She has no plans of ever growing up.

Guy Raz is an independent producer who has been described by the New York Times as “one of the most popular podcasters in history.”

Raz is the founder and CEO of Built-It Productions and the creator, host and the creative force behind How I Built This and Wisdom from the Top. He’s also the former host and co-creator of TED Radio Hour.

He’s also the creator/host of Wow in the World (from his children’s media company Tinkercast) and The Rewind on Spotify, a program about music.

Together, his programs are heard by nearly 19 million listeners a month.

In 2017, Raz became the first person in the history of podcasting to have three shows in the top 20 on the Apple Podcast charts.

He’s been a regular guest on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and is a two-time New York Times bestselling author. His books include How I Built This and Wow in the World: The How and Wow of the Human Body (co-authored with Mindy Thomas.)

Previously, Raz was weekend host of NPR News’ signature afternoon newsmagazine All Things Considered. During his tenure (2009-2012), he transformed the sound and format of the program, introducing the now-signature “cover story” and creating the popular “Three-Minute Fiction” writing contest.

Raz started his career as an intern on All Things Considered with NPR in 1997. He would go on to work as a production assistant, studio director all the way to foreign correspondent and breaking news host.

His first job in journalism was as assistant to the legendary news reporter Daniel Schorr.

In 2000, at the age of 25, Raz was made NPR’s Berlin bureau chief where he covered Eastern Europe and the Balkans. During his six years abroad, Raz covered everything from wars and conflict zones to sports and entertainment. He reported from more than 40 countries including the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Macedonia, and the ongoing conflict in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Raz also served as NPR’s bureau chief in London, and between 2004-2006 as CNN’s Jerusalem correspondent. During this time, Raz chronicled everything from the rise of Hamas as a political power to the incapacitation of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. In 2006, Raz returned to NPR to serve as defense correspondent where he covered the Pentagon and the US military.

For his reporting from Iraq, Raz was awarded both the Edward R. Murrow Award and the Daniel Schorr Journalism prize. His reporting has contributed to two duPont awards and one Peabody awarded to NPR. He’s been a finalist for the Livingston Award four times. He’s won the National Headliner Award and an NABJ award, in addition to many others. In 2008, he spent a year as a Nieman journalism fellow at Harvard University where he studied classical history.

As a host and correspondent, Raz has interviewed and profiled more than 10,000 people including Bill Gates, Condoleezza Rice, Jimmy Carter, Shimon Peres, General David Petraeus, Al Gore, Mark Zuckerberg, Eminem, Taylor Swift and many, many others.

Raz has anchored live coverage on some of the biggest stories in recent years, including the killing of Osama bin Laden, the Newtown School Shootings and the 2012 presidential election.

He has also served as a Ferris professor of journalism at Princeton University, a Shapiro fellow at George Washington University and an adjunct professor of journalism at Georgetown.

Book Review: Hairlarious Critter Tails by Sharon Kleve

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Take a walk on the wild side with this amazing animal book filled with vibrant photos and fabulously funny facts for any age.

See animals of all kinds in action and investigate their habits and habitats in the readable, browse-able, picture-packed book. You’ll learn hopping fun rabbit facts, nutty facts to make you appreciate squirrels and chipmunks, peculiar facts about hedgehogs, furry facts about nature’s bandit, the raccoon, prickly facts about porcupines and so much more…

Clear, vibrant photographs bring it all to life in the pages of this delightful fun-filled reference book for adults and kids.

Amazon

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free e-copy from the author. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

I love this book! It would be a great gift for any animal lover. It is full of beautiful photos of mostly small animals. Along with the photos are interesting facts and a few puns at the end of most sections.

Some of the facts that stood out to me:

  • Squirrels aren’t found in Antarctica, of course, but there aren’t any in Australia either.
  • The gastric brooding frog swallows her eggs and the tadpoles remain in her stomach for up to 8 weeks, then hop out of her mouth! The male Darwin frog swallows the eggs and stores the tadpoles in his vocal sac until they hop out.
  • Rabbits are active at dawn and dusk.
  • The female chicken starts life carrying thousands of undeveloped yolks.
  • The peahen has special sensors in her crest that are tuned in to her peacock and when he fans his tail, he shakes it 26 times a second creating a pressure wave that literally rattles the female’s head.
  • Raccoons run up to 51 miles/hour, can fall from 130 feet without injury, are fast swimmers, and are smarter than cats!

Hairlarious Critter Tails is one of those books you can go back to time and time again.

About the Author

Sharon Kleve was born and raised in Washington and currently lives on the Olympic Peninsula with her husband and two cats. When not writing, and working full-time, she can usually be found either curled up in her recliner with her cats and a good book or in the kitchen making baking sourdough bread or bagels.

Sharon is a multi-published author of contemporary romance published in eBook, paperback, on audio and translated into foreign languages. She has written New Adult and Romantic Suspense, but what brings her the most joy is writing Romantic Comedies.

She loves giving her characters the happily ever after they deserve–with a few laughs and maybe a few bumps and bruises along the way.

Her latest adventure is writing about her favorite furry friends.

Email: sharon.kleve@gmail.com
Blog: http://authorsharonkleve.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sharonkleve
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/srkleve/boards/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5399389.Sharon_Kleve
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Sharon-Kleve/e/B006JAH14S

Book Review: Jonathan and the Giant Eagle by Danny Christopher

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Publication date: June 8, 2021

Jonathan’s parents have decided to let Jonathan choose a pet. They are not prepared for his choice—a giant eagle. (Is that even legal?)

Jonathan recounts his new experiences with this unique and astonishing pet. A mythical giant eagle doesn’t fit easily into everyday life, but there are some advantages to having such a creature by your side. Ultimately, Jonathan comes to the difficult decision that his new friend must be set free.

With rhyming text and a humorous and lighthearted tone, this book is meant to be read aloud.

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free e-copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

What a fun book! When Jonathan is told by his parents that he can have a pet, he chooses a giant eagle. They have fun together, but Jonathan eventually learns on his own that his eagle needs more space and freedom, so he lets him go.

Jonathan and the Giant Eagle encourages children to use their imaginations. It is meant to read aloud, which makes sense because the text is rhyming, and the illustrations are bright and colorful and big enough to read the book to a whole class. They’re also quite detailed!

This is definitely a book I recommend to read to young children. I’m looking forward to getting a copy to read to my grandchildren.

About the Author

Danny Christopher is a Canadian illustrator and art teacher. He has travelled throughout the Canadian Arctic as an instructor for Nunavut Arctic College. He is the illustrator of The Legend of the Fog, A Children’s Guide to Arctic Birds, and Animals Illustrated: Polar Bear, and author of Putuguq and Kublu. His work on The Legend of the Fog was nominated for the Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustration Award. He lives in Toronto with his wife, four children, and a puppy.

Book Review: The Big Book of Wild Cats by Rachael Smith

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Explore the wonderful world of wild cats―an encyclopedia for kids

Did you know that wild cats can be found on every continent except Antarctica? That’s right―there’s a whole world of wild cats to discover in this standout among animal facts books for kids! The Big Book of Wild Cats is packed with life-like illustrations, colorful photos, and fascinating facts about wild cats.

Everything animal facts books for kids should be, this book has in-depth information about all 37 species of wild cats. Discover details about each one’s appearance, habitat, social structure, hunting habits, and how they raise their young. Whether you’re writing a school report or just want to learn about wild cats, you’ll have a roaring good time with The Big Book of Wild Cats.

All animal facts books for kids should include:

  • Cats by continent―Unlike other animal facts books for kids, this one has illustrated maps showing which wild cats live on each continent around the globe.
  • Endangered cats―Find out ways you can do your part to help endangered wild cats like tigers and snow leopards.
  • Helpful definitions―Discover an easy-to-understand glossary for some of the more advanced words in this exciting choice among animal facts books for kids.

Bring the excitement of wild cats into your own home (safely!) with facts and pictures you won’t find in other animal facts books for kids. The Big Book of Wild Cats has it all!

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free copy from Callisto Publisher’s Club. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

The first thing The Big Book of Wild Cats does is list wild cats from the biggest to the smallest. In case you were wondering, tigers are the biggest and can grow up to 10 feet long and weigh between 220 and 660 pounds. For some reason, I always thought lions were bigger, but they’re not. The smallest are wildcats which grow from 16 inches to 36 inches long and weigh between 6 and 18 pounds.

Next it explains the fastest cats, the cheetah being the fastest of course. But it also lists the runners up.

Most of the book is divided into Big Cats and Small Cats and each section lists size, life span, food they eat, sounds they make, what they look like, where they live, their social structure including the raising of their young, hunting habits, skills, and more. Most of the cats have a section about their population because many are vulnerable and their population is threatened. Others are elusive and scientists aren’t sure how many there are.

At the end of the book are helpful maps and a glossary. It also explains about endangered cats and how you may be able to help.

I definitely recommend The Big Book of Wild Cats for all ages. It will give you hours of entertainment with interesting facts about wild cats of every kind.

About the Author

Rachael Smith is the founder and curriculum designer of Literacy with the Littles (literacywiththelittles.com). Through her blog, she shares crafts and activities for parents and teachers that are designed to help little ones develop a love of learning. In 2010, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and began her teaching career. Rachael is a former first grade teacher turned stay-at-home mom. She is a wife and mother of four little ones. She enjoys crafting, sports, traveling, spending time outdoors, and making memories with her family.

Book Review: The Fascinating Animal Book for Kids by Ginjer L. Clarke

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Are you a budding zookeeper or veterinarian, or are you just WILD about animals? Everything that animal books for kids ages 9-12 should be, The Fascinating Animal Book for Kids is packed with colorful photos and 500 ferocious facts about creatures from all over the world.

Unlike other animal books for kids ages 9-12, all the super cool facts inside are organized by type of animal, so you can quickly find the critters you want to study.

Animal books for kids ages 9-12 should be fun and educational. In this one, you’ll learn super cool facts like: Snow leopards keep themselves warm by wrapping their tails around their bodies like scarves. Fireflies use their lights to talk to each other. Immortal jellyfish can live forever. They grow to adulthood and then shrink back to babies, over and over again.

Look no further for fun and colorful animal books for kids ages 9-12—this one has you covered.

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free copy from Callisto Publisher’s Club. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

What an interesting book! You don’t have to be a kid to appreciate The Fascinating Animal Book for Kids. I learned a lot. For example, did you know that a car could go 20 miles using the methane gas produced by one elephant’s farts in a single day? Just like the title says, it’s fascinating. Another example is that I knew that the Immortal Jellyfish can live forever. But I didn’t know that it grows to adulthood then reverts back to being a baby, over and over again.

The Fascinating Animal Book for Kids is full of gems like my two examples. It also has pictures of the animals. It’s in six color-coded chapters: Magnificent Mammals, Creepy Crawlies, Water World, Scaly Things, Amazing Amphibians, and Feather Friends. The only thing I noticed that would make it better is if there was an index. I only noticed that because I went to look up the jellyfish for this review, and I had to go to the Water World section and look through to find the jellyfish. It’s not a big deal but worth mentioning.

I definitely recommend The Fascinating Animal Book for Kids for all ages. It will give you hours of entertainment with interesting facts about animals of every kind.

Book Review: The Secret Life of Moles (and their friends) by Liz Burgess

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Title: The Secret Life of Moles (and their friends)
Author: Liz Burgess
Release Date: 28th February 2019
Genre: Picture Book
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Clink Street Publishing

 

Liz Burgess has always held a keen interest in nature, especially small furry mammals!

Long fascinated by their secret activities at home in her own back garden, and the fields surrounding it, she decided to explore this special underground world, and find out more about moles and their other little friends. Liz Burgess lives in South Yorkshire and The Secret Life of Moles is her first book for children.

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44015942-the-secret-life-of-moles

Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Secret-Life-Moles-Liz-Burgess-ebook/dp/B07NJ4VR79

 

 

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

The Secret Life of Moles is the story of a mole family that has outgrown their field so one of the children and his friends decide to find a new field to live in. Unfortunately, it’s actually a person’s garden but with the assistance of other animals in the yard, the moles are able to move in.

This is a cute story and explains how and where moles live but it would not keep the attention of a 5-year-old. There are a few sketches but no colorful pictures to keep a child’s attention. I do think it would be a good book for 7 or 8-year-olds to learn about moles.

 

 

About the Author

Liz Burgess lives in South Yorkshire has enjoyed a varied career, including working for a UK Environmental Charity, the latter 10 years as a Director. She had always had a keen interest in nature especially small mammals, activities in her own back garden and the surrounding fields inspired her to write the Secret Life of Moles. Any reference to a moles natural behaviour in The Secret Life of Moles is correct according to Liz’s small amount of research. All the drawings were been done by Liz in pencil and ink.

At the age of 68, Liz enjoys hiking, birdwatching anything to do with wildlife. She has done quite a bit of foreign travel, including rain forests, jungles and was fortunate to see a ‘tiger’ in the wild. Liz retired at 60, previous to this she worked for an environmental charity for 28 years. Mainly involved with operational developments but she does have a background in Human Resources and Employment Law.

 

 

Book Review: Animals Have Feelings, Too! by Karen Lee Stevens

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Animals Have Feelings Too banner

 

Animals Have Feelings TooTitle: Animals Have Feelings, Too!: Exploring Emotions From A to Z
Author: Karen Lee Stevens
Publisher: All for Animals
Pages: 32
Genre: Children’s Picture Book

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About the Book

Filled with humor and whimsical illustrations, this enchanting and educational A to Z guide takes young readers on a journey through the alphabet with a lovable Labrador retriever named Sandy, who shows kids that animals and people share many of the same feelings. From A is for Affectionate to Z is for Zonked, Animals Have Feelings, Too! helps children to understand and express their feelings and to treat animals with kindness and respect.

For More Information

  • Animals Have Feelings, Too!: Exploring Emotions From A to Z is available at Amazon
    .
  • Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.

My Review

I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.

Sandy is an adorable Labrador retriever who shares different emotions that animals have using the letters from A to Z. The text is easy to understand and there is a cute picture for each letter. The pictures are mostly of Sandy and Willow, a cat who is a friend. 

I think children will love this book. It also teaches them that animals have feelings, too. That’s a very important lesson for children because I think some kids don’t realize that.

The last couple of pages are for grown-ups and I think they’re a good addition to Animals Have Feelings, Too! The first page suggests a game to play to further help children understand that animals have feelings. It also describes All for Animals which is a nonprofit organization. The last page lists the biographies of the author, the illustrator, and, most importantly, Sandy.

 

Book Excerpt

Hi Kids,

My name is Sandy and I’m a yellow Labrador retriever. Most of the time, I’m a happy-go-lucky pup, but once in awhile, I feel lonely or grumpy, too. Just like you, I experience lots of different emotions (that’s a BIG word for feelings).

When I’m happy, I wag my tail and let out a soft ruff-ruff-ruff as if to say Let’s play! When I’m annoyed or frightened, I may grumble and growl, meaning Back off, buddy! Stay away!

My feline friend, Willow, likes to remind me that I’m not perfect, but I love her anyhow. And that’s why I’ve asked her to help me introduce you to my very favorite feeling words. I hope you’ll share them with your human family and, of course, your furry and feathered friends!

 

Love,

Sandy

 

About the Author

Karen Lee StevensKaren Lee Stevens is the founder and president of All for Animals, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a compassionate world for animals and children through humane education and literacy programs that nurture the human-animal bond.

Karen is also an author and a Certified Humane Educator who, for the past 14 years, has given presentations to thousands of elementary school children and has helped them learn how to treat animals with love and respect.

In February, 2013, Karen launched ARF! (Animals + Reading = Fun!), a unique literacy program that gives children from all walks of life an opportunity to improve their reading skills and inspire them to become life-long readers by reading aloud to specially trained therapy dogs.

Her latest children’s picture book is Animals Have Feelings, Too!: Exploring Emotions From A to Z.

For More Information