Life in the Boreal Forest
Grade 3–5—A vast, yet endangered, ecosystem flourishes in this slim, elegant pictorial book. Spirin's dramatic, realistic illustrations spill over the pages, compressing Guiberson's lyrical text into bamboo-toned columns on the side. Exploding with the sounds of the boreal forest (in spring, a Tennessee warbler sings "tika tika swee swee!" while a moose "squish squosh"-es in a beaver pond), the text describes the interaction of entwined lives in this special ecosystem. (One small note—the air hole depicted in the snow-covered beaver lodge seems a tad large—a predator could gain easy entry.) Taking readers through the seasons, Guiberson and Spirin present a verbal and pictorial treasury for nature lovers and young researchers alike.—Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NYEND