Time for a Bath

K-Gr 3--Jenkins and Page introduce an array of creatures, showcasing how they bathe and sleep. Both titles conclude with an appendix detailing further information about the featured animals. The illustrations are rendered in torn- and cut-paper collage, with each animal is set against a white background. The brief text floats nearby, resulting in a pleasant balance that focuses on the creature in question. In Bath, readers are informed that animals bathe for different reasons: to clean themselves, to cool off, to warm up, and to dissuade parasites. A "vulture takes a sunbath. The sun's warmth feels good, and the sunlight helps kill bacteria." The gecko, lacking eyelids, keeps its eyeballs dirt-free by licking them with "its long, flexible tongue." Sleep introduces animals from the familiar red fox to the lesser-known basilisk. Fascinating behaviors are detailed with explanations, such as the "white stork sleeps in flight...by taking a series of naps that last just a few seconds each." Among the myriad curiosities is the bottlenose dolphin: "one half of its brain stays awake to tell the dolphin when it's time to surface and take a breath." Readers will be captivated.--Laura Butler, Mount Laurel Library, NJ

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

"These will be an effective way to introduce animal habits and to link them to human behavior, and they may elicit audience interest in further discussion and exploration." —Bulletin