Jaguar in the Rain Forest [Hardcover]

Joanne Ryder (Author), Michael Rothman (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up | Series: Just for a Day Book

Imagine climbing your favorite tree, speckled in sunlight and shadows, then changing...into a mighty spotted cat in a faraway rain forest. You are a jaguar hidden in a world of green. Giant trees stretch upward, where flowers bloom, birds soar, and butterflies glide above your reach.

"Jaguar in the Rain Forest invites you into the lush, tropical world of one of the most magnificent hunters on earth. Be a jaguar just for a day- prowling the forest floor; crossing a flowing river in search of prey; filling the darkness with your deep, grunting call; then, silent and deadly, stalking a creature that never knows you are there.

In this dramatic addition to the "Just for a Day series, award-winning author Joanne Ryder and nature artist Michael Rothman once again imagine the life of a wild animal in its own natural world. Meticulously researched and marvelously evocative, their book invites you to live among the creatures of the rain forest- just for a day.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-3?"Imagine you are climbing a ragged tree trunk hand over hand. You are speckled in sunlight that warms and changes you until...you are a jaguar." So begins this engaging picture book in which readers experience the sights and sounds of the rainforest through the eyes of the animal. They observe as he lounges by day, watching the activities of the spider monkeys and birds in the canopy, and hunts by night in successful pursuit of an armadillo. Rothman vividly captures the images of the rainforest in French Guiana. The lyrical text placed on full-page richly colored pictures makes this an excellent book for reading aloud and for group discussion.?Helen Rosenberg, Chicago Public Library, IL
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ages 5^-9. Through the imagination of a boy climbing hand over hand up a tree trunk, readers are transported to the treetop lair of a jaguar. There the youth's imaginings flower into Rothman's lush double-page paintings inspired by the tropical rain forest of French Guiana. Ryder's schooled text wraps scientific facts about the jaguar's lifestyle and habitat in poetic phrases that are unobtrusively placed in Rothman's expansive views of the jaguar padding along the riverbank, stalking its armadillo prey, or relaxing on a branch in the forest canopy. The luminous acrylics create a you-are-there immediacy, making the artist's sumptuous depictions of the forest fauna into a memorable armchair excursion. Ellen Mandel

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (March 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688129900
• ISBN-13: 978-0688129903
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 9.1 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: #2,387,791 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A poetic story on jaguars., February 19, 2011

By 

Thomas Sandusky "Author, Gracie the glass tre... (Spring Hill, Florida) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Jaguar in the Rain Forest (Hardcover)

Joanne Ryder's notes on jaguars at the beginning of the book was outstanding. I like having information on the subject before I start reading the story. The boy imagining he was a jaguar was unique and realistic because most children play using their imaginations. I thought the story was poetic with great illustrations. I'm glad I own this book.

Thomas Sandusky
Creator of Stories from the Rainforest