Prairie Dogs Kiss and Lobsters Wave: How Animals Say Hello [Hardcover]

Marilyn Singer (Author), Normand Chartier (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up

When people meet, they shake hands, hug, smile, and say, "How are you? What's new?" But what about lions and bears and fish? How do they greet one another?

In this intriguing picture book Marilyn Singer explores, explains, and describes the extraordinary ways in which animals communicate. When zebras meet, for example, they pull back their lips and chew the air to show that they won't bite each other.

Young readers will also be introduced to some of the basic elements of animal behavior, such as why lions are the only wild cats that live in groups. Detailed illustrations by Normand Chartier complete this informative look at the fascinating world of the animal kingdom.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 4-Singer describes the social behavior of 14 animals, showing the different ways these creatures greet others of their own species. An introduction notes that human greetings vary depending on the situation and explains that those of animals may also vary depending on gender, rank, or whether the creatures are strangers to one another. Dogs smell one another's faces and hindquarters to determine age, gender, and willingness to mate. Prairie dog strangers try to bite each other but friends or relatives kiss with lips open and teeth bared. The habits of walruses, giraffes, chimpanzees, bees, elephants, zebras, lions, bears, lobsters, and luminous fish are also included. Each two-page spread is devoted to one animal with several paragraphs of text and a watercolor illustration. The facts are entertaining and informative and will encourage children to watch animals in their homes, natural environments, or zoos with greater knowledge and interest.
Adele Greenlee, Bethel College, St. Paul, MN
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Marilyn Singer is the author of fifty books for children, including Bottoms Up! A Book About Rear Ends. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Normand Chartier is an award-winning illustrator with fifty books to his credit. He makes his home in Brooklyn, Connecticut.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); 1st edition (October 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805037039
• ISBN-13: 978-0805037036
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 8.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,712,631 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Marilyn Singer was born in the Bronx (New York City) on October 3, 1948 and lived most of her early life in N. Massapequa (Long Island), NY. She attended Queens College, City University of New York, and for her junior year, Reading University, England. She holds a B.A. in English from Queens and an M.A. in Communications from New York University.

In 1974, after teaching English in New York City high schools for several years, she began to write - initially film notes, catalogues, teacher's guides, and film strips. Then, one day, when she was sitting in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, she penned a story featuring talking insect characters she'd made up when she was eight. Encouraged by the responses she got, she wrote more stories, and in 1976, her first book, The Dog Who Insisted He Wasn't, was published by E.P.Dutton & Co.

Since then, Marilyn has published over eighty books for children and young adults. Her genres are many and varied, including realistic novels, fantasies, non-fiction, fairy tales, picture books, mysteries and poetry. She likes writing many different kinds of books because it's challenging and it keeps her from getting bored.

Marilyn currently lives in Brooklyn, NY, with her husband Steve; their standard poodle Oggi, seen in the home page photo; a cat named August ; two collared doves named Jubilee and Holiday; and a starling that says, "Hi. How are you? Sweet Birdie. Okay!" Her interests include ballroom/Latin dancing, dog training, reading, hiking, bird-watching, gardening, playing computer adventure games, and going to the movies and the theatre. She's also a major Star Trek fan.

Marilyn is the former host of the AOL Children's Writers Chat and currently co-hosts the Poetry Blast at various conferences. Visit her web site: www.marilynsinger.net.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Prairie Dogs Kiss, May 23, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Prairie Dogs Kiss and Lobsters Wave: How Animals Say Hello (Hardcover)

I first picked up this book for the title. I thought it was so cute! The pictures and content are great for teaching children about how animals greet each other. Everyone knows that dogs sniff each other, but how many know that Prairie dogs kiss each other, and bite each other if they don't like the other prairie dog! Or that lobsters really do wave at each other. Mrs. Singer gives examples of many different animals and how they greet each other. I think most children from age 8 and up will enjoy this book.