Monarch Magic!: Butterfly Activities & Nature Discoveries (Williamson Kids Good Times!(Tm).)
Grade 3-6-The first half of this colorful book focuses on the insect's life cycle, delineating each stage of its metamorphosis in a smooth blend of large-print text and snapshot-sized color photographs. The monarch's pattern of migration and the importance of its host plant, the milkweed, are also discussed. The second section gives step-by-step directions for a wealth of projects and activities such as rearing a monarch butterfly from either the egg or caterpillar stage; keeping a journal to track migration or chart growth; setting up a butterfly feeding station; constructing a pom-pom caterpillar; forming a club to promote monarch awareness; and joining an Internet group to track migration (Web sites are provided). Numerous sidebars provide additional miscellaneous information, define terms, or offer "see" references to projects (these are unnecessary, as all projects are listed in the index and on the contents page). Clear, full-color photographs and a few drawings and diagrams are also included. While the layout is lively, the many different elements appearing on each page detract from the main text. Another minor flaw-although every other stage of the butterfly's life cycle is described in detail, the text does not explain how the insects actually mate. These quibbles aside, the information provided is clearly written and well organized. Laurence Pringle's An Extraordinary Life: The Story of a Monarch Butterfly (Orchard, 1997) and Kathryn Lasky's Monarchs (Harcourt, 1993) provide similar information, but no other book offers the same wealth of related activities.Karey Wehner, San Francisco Public LibraryCopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.