Animals in Flight [Hardcover]

Robin Page (Author), Steve Jenkins (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

Wings carry tiny insects, fluttering butterflies, backyard birds, and they even propelled some dinosaurs up and through the skies. Find out how, when, and why birds and beasts have taken to the air, and discover how wings work in this informative and brilliantly illustrated book about flight.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 1-4-Jenkins's trademark illustrations, watercolor cut-paper collage, are perfect for this exploration of wings. From the striped, transparent wings of the ancient dragonfly to the crushed, leathery wings of the vampire bat, each illustration captures the uniqueness of the appendage it portrays. In addition to the large, double-page collages, small, computer-produced, spot illustrations clarify points in the text. With their creamy colors and sharp outlines, these tiny pictures are lovely as well as informative. The text is brief. Three fonts cue readers to the three different types of information: 1) a one- or two-line description; 2) a caption for the large illustration; and 3) a more-detailed explanation of the flight of a specific animal. How flies land on the ceiling, how butterflies take off straight up from a flower, how hummingbirds hover-all are clarified in word and picture. An appendix provides an additional paragraph about the animal introduced on each spread. An excellent introduction.

Ellen Heath, Orchard School, Ridgewood, NJ

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ages 4-8. Jenkins returns with his expert cut-paper illustrations in this fact-packed title coauthored by his wife. Designed for multiple age levels, the text combines simple, declarative statement in large type--"Insects were the first flying animals," for example--with paragraphs in a smaller font that expand on the spread's topic. The dramatic collages match the text's proportions, with captivating images of an animal in flight dominating the pages, as smaller drawings illustrate ideas in the in-depth paragraphs. The results are not always successful: the smaller font often seems too small, although plain white backgrounds increase visibility. But both images and text will excite children about flight's miraculous possibilities and answer questions about how flight evolved, what flies, how it's done, and why. A concluding spread offers more coverage of the animals featured throughout the book. An attractive, informative choice for sharing with kids almost ready to read on their own. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children; None edition (October 29, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0618123512
• ISBN-13: 978-0618123513
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 9.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,188,131 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Really cool book, January 24, 2011

By 

Mike K - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Animals in Flight (Hardcover)

I gave this book to my 6 year old niece for Christmas and she loves it. She finds it exciting to look at all the pictures of the winged animals and too read about them. The pictures are really cool looking and there is a lot to learn in this book.