African Elephant

September 1, 2022
Grades 2-4 In these installments in the Young Zoologist series (2 new titles), readers dive deep into the world of some of the planet's most majestic and beloved creatures. Highly visual, these books make a splash with their detailed illustrations, opening "Fact File" charts on their featured animals, as well as a "Before You Start" guides for readers that lay out key items needed for studying animals in the field. Topical double-page spreads present a range of pertinent subjects, from the animals' anatomy, life cycle, and daily activities to their social and family lives and conservation statuses. African Elephant takes readers to Africa to learn what elephants eat, how they communicate, and where their migration routes take them. What makes this series stand out is that the illustrations, bite-sized facts, and clear labels make it easy for the youngest of readers to navigate the text and absorb the information there. An immersive reading experience for the young and curious.

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October 1, 2022
A portrait of the big flappers as parents and "ecosystem engineers." Ihwagi, a zoologist who works for an elephant conservation organization, opens with a gallery of necessary gear for elephant observers--including an elephant GPS collar ("Elephant GPS collars are HUGE. You will need a vehicle to transport them")--and then goes on to survey his subjects' physical features, matriarchal social organization, behaviors, moods (including useful cues to when an elephant is "unhappy" and thus to be well avoided), threats from poachers and other hazards, and migratory habits. He closes with a look at the many ways elephants affect their habitats, from thinning forests by knocking down trees to creating water holes in dry seasons to providing plenty of poop to spread seeds and fertilize seedlings. Books on elephants are plentiful, but Ihwagi's commentary is insightful, spread in digestible blocks through Jones' painterly illustrations, which are crowded with stately pachyderms eating, drinking, fleeing hastily from bees (local farmers have found fences strung with beehives to be an effective deterrent), nuzzling calves, and posed in sociable groups. A view of silhouetted poachers pointing rifles in one scene is the only break from the cheery overall tone. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Similar profiles abound, but this is a particularly engaging one. (glossary, index) (Informational picture book. 6-8)

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