Here Is the African Savanna (Web of Life) - Softcover

Dunphy, Madeleine

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0977379523 ISBN 13: 9780977379521

Publisher: Web of Life Children's Books, 2006

Synopsis

Named an "Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children" by the National Science Teachers Association and Children's Book Council. Exotic environments like the African savanna have long held a fascination for young readers. This colorful picture book beautifully evokes that realm with images of giraffes, lions, hippos, elephants, and many more animals of the plains. Through cumulative, singsong verse, young readers learn how all living things in this important ecological community rely on one another for their existence. The book brings home the important lesson that when one of these animals or plants is killed off or goes extinct, the web of life is broken. Luminous paintings by Tom Leonard capture the untamed beauty of this timeless, endangered realm.

About this title

About the Author:

Madeleine Dunphy is an educational consultant who teaches children about endangered environments. Madeleine has written several books for children, including all of the books in the Here Is the ... series. She lives in Oakland, California with her husband, Chris, and their daughter, Gwen. For more information about Madeleine, her books, and her school presentations, visit her website at www.mdunphy.com.

From Kirkus Reviews:

PLB 0-7868-2134-5 A lovely circular, cumulative tale evokes the landscape and animals of the African savanna. Dunphy noses around the food chain as she introduces such creatures as zebras, lions, impalas, baboons, and elephants, against a backdrop of grass and acacia trees. Most of the animals, tick birds to hippos, make unobtrusive yet effective eye contact with readers, drawing them into the scene. Dunphy's wording is a pleasure to read, and her this-is-the-house-that-Jack-built structure is musical: ``who eat the grass/that grows on the plain/which turns green or brown/depending on rain:/Here is the African savanna.'' Leonard's artwork is equally engaging; he zooms in to catch the hippo's whiskers, pulls back to command the savanna's sweep, and maintains a steady flow of characters to keep the pacing crisp. A brief overview of the plants and animals mentioned in the book appears at the end. (Picture book. 3-8) -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

About this edition

• Publisher: Web of Life Children's Books
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0977379523
• ISBN 13: 9780977379521
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Leonard Tom