Follow a goggle-eyed octopus as she jets through the shadows, tentacles flying behind her. Finally she finds a well-hidden den in which to lay her eggs, which will dangle from the roof like grapes on a string. In silky verse, Karen Wallace explores the mysterious world of the octopus, while Mike Bostock’s flowing illustrations bring that world vividly to life.
| ||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Special Offers and Product Promotions
- This item is eligible for our 4-for-3 promotion. Eligible products include select Books and Home & Garden items. Buy any 4 eligible items and get the lowest-priced item free. Here's how (restrictions apply)
Frequently Bought Together
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
The Giant octopus's tentacles can grow to 150 feet, but in this graceful work the deep-sea creature seems tender and vulnerable. Wallace (previously paired with Bostock for Think of an Eel) uses two types of narrative. Facts are set in wavy lines of text, running concurrently with a story about a mother octopus's gestation, parturition and death. The story brims with poetic turns of phrase: a Wolf eel "darts from the shadows. His teeth strike like daggers. He rips off a tentacle. Then sinks like a nightmare deep into his den." The mother octopus defends herself through escape (shooting backward "by sucking in seawater and pumping it out"), camouflage (turning "very pale or very dark within seconds") and hiding ("Octopuses don't have any bones, and they can squeeze through the tiniest of holes"). Safe in her den, she lays eggs that "hang from the roof like grapes on a string." Bostock's thoughtfully composed watercolors are tactile, accurate and extremely attractive: rubbery tentacles undulate or creep on powerful suction cups; bubble-like babies swim up from their rock-bound nursery, out of which the mother's listless eye peers?their nursery will become her crypt. This seamless weave of text and illustration offers a welcome counterpoint to popular depictions (e.g., Verne's and others) of the octopus as deep-sea villain. Ages 5-8.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 2-Brief text and watercolor paintings describe how a female giant octopus moves, protects herself, and lays her eggs. The illustrations have a sense of drama; in one picture, the octopus fills the whole page, her long tentacles flying behind her in the blue-green ocean. At one point, a crab attacks and an eel rips off a tentacle with its daggerlike teeth. Each page has just a few sentences in large print, but they provide a basic introduction to the animal and many interesting facts. Although this book is classified as nonfiction, the information is related as a story. With its striking artwork, it will make an enticing read-aloud for children interested in this fascinating sea creature and for primary-grade science lessons.
Adele Greenlee, Bethel College, St. Paul, MN
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Adele Greenlee, Bethel College, St. Paul, MN
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Authors
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Informative Book, Beautifully Illustrated,
By A Customer
This review is from: Gentle Giant Octopus (Hardcover)
This would interest any child who likes sea creatures. Plenty of facts, poetically worded, and presented in small digestible blocks. The illustrations are beautifully drawn and coloured.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful and accurate,
By
This review is from: Gentle Giant Octopus: Read and Wonder (Paperback)
I am thrilled that there is such an accurate book about the life of an Octopus for kids. Nature is not always gentle, which unfortunately other people do not take into account in their review of this book. I love the octopus, and have bought this book for my kids and my nieces and nephews, because it is a book that is informative and wonderfully written.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
4th Grade Class Top Ten Winner,
This review is from: Gentle Giant Octopus: Read and Wonder (Paperback)
The title of this book is the Gentle Giant Octopus. The author of this book is Karen Wallace. The illustrator is Mike Bostock. The genre is true animal story.
The octopus can have 60,000 babies at a time. When a fish bites off a tentacle, the tentacle grows back. The octopus has no bones. It can fit in really small places. Octopi squirt ink to get away from predators. The main idea of this book is to teach people about octopi. It is also to teach how octopi live and survive in the ocean. It is on our top 10 because our class loves animals. It is a good book to read and to teach people about octopi.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
