Atlas of Animal Adventures: A Collection of Nature's Most Unmissable Events, Epic Migrations, and Extraordinary Behaviors

Gr 2–5—This oversize volume on some of the earth's most intriguing creatures is divided into sections that represent the seven continents, and made up of richly illustrated landscapes populated with several different types of animals. In each scene, one species is highlighted with a paragraph or two of informational text, along with insets that indicate where the animal lives and some of its physical characteristics. Additional snippets of facts are found throughout the illustrations, giving further fascinating information about the featured species and some of the other creatures pictured. From the cover to the endpapers to each individual landscape, this title is visually arresting, offering lush colors and incredible detail. Although the animals are portrayed with realistic body shapes and colors, they have friendly, almost cartoonlike expressions on their faces. In most spreads, a small number of the animals have been anthropomorphized (using fishing poles, wearing hats), which, along with the conversational tone of the text, creates a fun, lighthearted mood—even when dealing with topics such as hunting and survival.