Beavers
Gibbons (Ladybugs, 2012) is a master at creating factual books through which young readers can explore details of nature at an accessible and engaging depth. Her latest uses narrative text, generous and accurate watercolor illustrations, and informative inset boxes to show and tell readers about the habits, environments, family structure, and anatomy of the beaver, a mammal well known for its industrious dam building and playful social life. In detailed paintings, Gibbons depicts natural scenes as well as close-up details of curious beaver parts, such as their teeth, eyes, and leathery tails, along with cutaway scenes of beaver lodges and dams, their construction, and interior elements, such as living spaces and escape routes. As both a read-aloud and a resource for children in the earliest grades looking for a research source, this stands as a model. Pair with the chapter on human dam building in David Macaulay’s Building Big (2000). Preschool-Grade 2. --Francisca Goldsmith