Hello, Squirrels!

April 15, 2006
K-Gr. 2. The opening image of this title shows a nest of baby squirrels "all pink and helpless," a picture that should enchant young audiences, who are fascinated with animal babies. The book documents a year in a squirrel's life in a first-person narration that imitates a child's voice and cadences: "Mama squirrel feeds you milk and carefully licks you clean. She stays with you day and night." The text is filled with the kind of natural details that a child would observe. Holland's realistic colored-pencil drawings are framed with an occasional squirrel tail or leaf overflowing the border, and they are complemented by generous white space and easy-to-read print. More scientific information is provided in the answers to four questions at the end of the book. An attractive book that appeals to children's curiosity about the natural world.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)