Small Wonders: Baby Animals in the Wild [Hardcover]

Marilyn Baillie (Author), Romi Caron (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 3 and up | Grade Level: P and up

This amazing journey across North America takes readers from mountains to prairies, to the far north, and into coastal waters to visit animal families in their natural habitats. As they meet a variety of feathered and furry friends, including loons, polar bears, wolves, beavers, seals, and caribou, children learn how the families play, communicate, feed, and learn. Each animal is presented along with interesting facts about its environment. Other facts come from the animal itself; the moose calf, for instance, explains how it will grow huge antlers. Romi Caron’s charming watercolors, full of personality and expression, complement Marilyn Baillie’s lyrical text.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3—Realistic watercolors of North American animal parents and their young sprawl across facing pages, leaving ample space for two paragraphs of simple text. One is boxed, enclosing a modest amount of straightforward data, and the other, on the opposite page, voiced by the "babies," giving tiny snippets of "babyhood" and a glimpse of future, adult life. A final page offers a tad more data for the mildly curious. Similar in scope to Andrea Helman's Northwest Animal Babies (Sasquatch, 1998) and more geographically focused than Bruce McMillan's handsome The Baby Zoo (Scholastic, 1995), Seymour Simon's attractive Wild Babies (HarperCollins, 1997), or Kathy Darling's more detailed, eye-catching books about animal babies (Walker), this oversize, attractive, and easy-to-read book is a pleasing introduction.—Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

This book takes the reader on a true safari through the Canadian animal kingdom…Highly recommended. (CM Magazine: Canadian Review of Materials )

This is a large children’s book with pages that are filled, from edge to edge, with lovely watercolors depicting animal families. The focus is on the babies, of course, but between the information block on the left page and what you find out on the right, written from the baby animal’s point of view, you learn a great deal about the babies and what their lives will be like as they grow…Lovely! (Eclectic Home School Online )

The book was easy for me to read. I enjoyed it so much, I read it a few times. I would give this book a score of 10 out of 10. In a word, it was AWESOME! (Kristen Greenlaw, age 8, KNOW Magazine )

The juveniles’ narratives in particular will draw students in. The illustrations are beautiful… (Library Media Connection )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Maple Tree Press; 1 edition (August 4, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1897066724
• ISBN-13: 978-1897066720
• Product Dimensions: 12.2 x 9.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,772,528 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Small Wonders, Baby Animals In The Wild, June 3, 2011

By 

Mundie Moms/Mundie Kids "Katieb" (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Small Wonders: Baby Animals in the Wild (Hardcover)

I really liked the unique approach this book takes at capturing young readers attentions. One page talks a little bit about the wild animal baby, mentioning it's habitat, what it likes to do, what it looks like and the following page is from the animals point of view. For example, the Moose page has one page with facts about the moose, like where it lives, what it eats etc. The opposite has the young Moose telling the kids things that it will do when it's older, like sprout antlers. The book has great illustrations and it's a fun way for kids to learn more about wildlife. I read this my kids who enjoyed, although certain parts were a bit harder for my preschooler to understand. I think the targeted age range would be 5 yrs old & up. This book would make a great edition in any K-2nd grade classroom.

5.0 out of 5 stars A welcome and recommended addition, October 7, 2006

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Small Wonders: Baby Animals in the Wild (Hardcover)

Written in a manner as to have the animals announce themselves to the young reader, Marilyn Baillie informative and entertaining text is very nicely illustrated by the artistic talents of Romi Caron in "Small Wonders: Baby Animals In The Wild". Children's ages 3 to 7 are provided an ideal introduction to a series of baby animals that include Moose, Canadian Geese, Polar Bears, Wolves, Loons, Bison, Raccons, Cougars, Beavers, Mountain Sheep, Snowy Owls, Harp Seals, Caribou, and the Orca. Enhanced with the addition of a 'Have You Ever Wondered...' page answering a series of basic questions about the individual animals showcased in this outstanding picturebook, "Small Wonders: Baby Animals In The Wild" is a welcome and recommended addition to school and community library Pets & Wildlife collections.