Zanzibar the Zebra

June 1, 2010
PreS-Gr 1-The best part of these titles is the last page, which lists some facts about the real animal. The creatures in the stories are defined with human feelings, attitudes, and abilities. In addition, the plots and cartoonlike illustrations in garish colors can be scary. In the first title, Alice gets upset when parrots tell her that armadillos don't know anything because they sleep during the day. "They don't LIVE!" She stays up, meets animals that are dangerous to her kind, curls up, and is then passed from one to another as a ball. Poor Aliceno armadillo should have to tolerate such disrespect. "After the fright she'd had, it took a little coaxing to get her to come out of her shell," but "She had lived." There is a need for books that define values and attitudes for character education but these titles are heavy-handed and unattractive."Susan Lissim, Dwight School, New York City"

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