by Robie H Harris (Author) Nadine Bernard Westcott (Illustrator)
WorldCat is the world's largest library catalog, helping you find library materials online.
PreS-Gr 2--This is a straightforward presentation, as told through simple exposition and the dialogue of a young girl and boy who are going to the beach for the day. As the youngsters chat with one another about their similarities and differences, readers are greeted with visually appealing cartoonlike drawings that depict an array of people in various family groupings. As the two children change in their separate cabanas, arrows point to and name the parts of their bodies that distinguish them as male or female. A dog (of the same sex as the child) has crept into each child's cabana so its parts are labeled, too. Correct terminology is used, e.g., vagina, scrotum, penis, ovary, uterus, but Harris does not delve into how these body parts function, and she doesn't address the reproductive process. The book serves as a great way to introduce male and female body parts for anyone not used to discussing or naming them. For a more comprehensive look at body parts, reproduction, and birth, check out Harris's It's Not the Stork! (Candlewick, 2006).--Maggie Chase, Boise State University, ID
Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.