Over in the Jungle

May 1, 2007
PreS-Gr 3-Another variation on the familiar song, this one enumerates some of the unusual fauna of the rain forest. It not only spotlights some of the animalsmarmosets, parrots, honey bears, leaf cutter ants, etc.but also offers pertinent information on the habitat. Berkes describes the different layers of the rainforest and its importance to our global ecology, and suggests movement activities for children to act out the rhyme. The unusual and colorful illustrations are made with polymer clay and then photographed, giving them a three-dimensional look. Each spread has the text and a number on the left against a dark-green leaf background, and shows one animal family with the correct number of babies as well as several other sets of indigenous flora or fauna to count. A long double page shows all the levels of the rain forest in cross section, and children are challenged to count the animals previously encountered and now hanging on the vines and hiding underneath the trees, etc. This is a handsome book on an important subject, and it can serve as recreational reading as well as an introduction to a basic unit on the rain forest."Judith Constantinides, formerly at East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA"

Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.