Flashy, Fantastic Rain Forest Frogs [Paperback]

Dorothy Hinshaw Patent (Author), Kendahl Jan Jubb (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up | Series: Books for Young Readers

Describes the physical characteristics, behavior, reproduction, and habitat of frogs that live in the rain forest.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-4. Although many books on tropical rain forests include information about tree frogs, none concentrates on these animals to the extent that Patent does here. She discusses rain-forest ecology and how it affects the lives of the small creatures, but her primary focus is on the frogs themselves. The author notes the similarities and differences in their life cycles, especially the ways they produce their young. Patent mentions the poisonous properties of some frogs and notes the use of the poison both by native hunters and by scientists developing medicines. She also mentions the endangered status of frogs in some parts of the world. Maps indicate the regions where various creatures live. Jubb's illustrations are colorful but somewhat overcrowded. Although the approach emphasizes the abundant plant and animal life of the tropical rain forest, it makes focusing on the frogs themselves difficult at times. Also, the pictures don't convey effectively the size differences noted in the text. Still, they do an adequate job of holding children's attention. The material is interesting enough to draw a wider audience than just students doing reports.?Kathy Piehl, Mankato State University, MN
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Ages 5^-8. With text overlaid on illustrations that completely cover every page, this book introduces rain forest frogs, showing how they are like North American frogs, how some of them are unique, and how they are suited to their habitats. Just as the text is packed with information, the pictures are dense with color and line. Wherever the viewer's eyes fall on the page, another rain forest creature is there. Visually, the bounty can be disconcerting, particularly when separate pictures with similar colors and patterns meet in the center margin of a spread, as they often do. Still, the jacket illustration is eye-catching, and many of the interior scenes are attractive in their own right. The book's well-written text is right on the mark for the age group. A world map locates various frogs in rain forests on five continents on the colorful endpapers. Carolyn Phelan --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Walker Childrens; 1st Pbk. Ed edition (March 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802775365
• ISBN-13: 978-0802775368
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 9 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #542,076 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #86 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Ages 4-8 > Picture Books
  • #90 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Animals > Reptiles & Amphibians > Nonfiction

More About the Author

Every since I was a child I've loved nature and animals. I spent my time out of doors, picking flowers and scooping tadpoles out of ponds. So it's no wonder I studied biology and became an author myself of a favorite gift when I was young, a book about nature. I've expanded into other fascinating areas of nonfiction, too, especially historical topics of the American west, such as Lewis and Clark and Native Americans.
My work has given me the gift of travel to all sorts of fascinating places such as the Galapagos Island, the Costa Rican Rain Forest, and the famous cave at Lascaux, France, full of amazing ancient art that is no longer open to visitors.

To learn more about me and my books, visit my website, www.dorothyhinshawpatent.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars LOOK FACT BECAUSE THEY ARE GOING FAST...What a great learning tool we have here, September 11, 2011

By 

D. Blankenship (The Ozarks) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Flashy, Fantastic Rain Forest Frogs (Paperback)

When I was a boy growing up I faced many a dilemma. I was one of those kids who was an outdoor geek and spent much more time an energy snooping through wood, creek, pond and prairie than just about anything else. While I loved all things wild, I was quite partial to cold blooded creatures and my dilemma was that I was torn between my interest and fascination of frogs on one hand and snakes on the other. This has not improved over the years. I would love to have had this little book when I was a young one.

There are a lot of frog facts packed in and on these 32 pages; facts that in truth be applied to frogs all over the world and not just in the rain forest. But all that being said and noted, the thrust of this particular work of course is on those fascinating amphibians found in the quickly dwindling rain forest of our planet. And make no mistake about it, we are loosing these creatures at a rate that boggles the mind. year after year- indeed, month after month! It is quite possible; indeed, it is quite likely that your grandchildren will only be able to see them as pictures and they will enter the realm now occupied by dinosaurs and Passenger Pigeons.

Dorothy Hinshaw Patent has done a wonderful job is writing of her subject here. Not only has she written a wonderful natural history of the rain forest frogs, but she has doe it in a manner that the little ones can and do understand perfectly. If that were not enough, Kendahl Jan Jubb has offered up some of the finest paintings of these secretive yet colorful creatures that you will ever lay eyes on. To be honest, I can spend hours just looking at her beautifully executed art in this one.

These two, writer and artist have blended their talents, which are considerable, to provide us an exciting learning tool; a tool I have found that children are drawn to time and time again. This team has captured the essence of the environment perfectly. I am lucky in the fact that I have had the privilege of visiting rain forests; walking, listening, smelling and breathing this vanishing ecosystem. Trust me...these two caught it all.

Give your child a treat...as a matter of fact, give yourself a treat and get this one for the family bookshelf.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Art and Information, January 26, 2011

By 

Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Flashy, Fantastic Rain Forest Frogs (Paperback)

FLASHY, FANTASTIC RAIN FOREST FROGS is another in the series of the study of animal life by writer Dorothy Hinshaw Patent and watercolor artist Kendahl Jan Jubb. It is difficult to ascertain which of these two gifted women places first in this particular book. Patent extends our knowledge of this little known group of creatures and in doing so she addresses the entire spectrum of rain forest ecology and the importance of the greening of the planet. There is more information about the various aspects of the frogs than we've ever seen in a book designed for youngsters - a fine way to inculcate the importance of ecology at an early stage in the education of children. But what makes the message palpate is the brilliant use of watercolor images created by artist Kendahl Jan Jubb who has here produced one of her finest full-through assignments in illustration. This little book is a treasure on many levels, not the least of which is the capitalization on one of the hottest topics of the day! Grady Harp, January 11