Animal Books

Ken Hultgren's animal drawing book is by far the best I've ever seen. The drawings are not only beautiful and full of life but rich in anatomical information as well. Studying and copying these drawings, combined with a few trips to the zoo and a horse ranch, enhanced my awareness of animal anatomy and movement enormously.
I used this book as my primary resource for modeling, rigging, animating a horse in Maya. It's a great asset for animators, modelers, sculptors -- artists of any sort-- or anyone who loves animals and good drawings.

Excellent art reference for the developing artist who wants to understand animal anatomy and motion.

The book has lots of great drawing. I wish it had more explanations. But I still love it.

if you are studying animal drawing, this is one of the best books ever. this concentrates on the motion and line of action, as well as the construction!

This book is somewhere right between a "How to Draw Animals" book and a detailed anatomy book. It gives you the basics of the muscles for each animal in beautiful, dynamic sketches that take you from drawing static (but proportional) animals to leaping, rolling, fighting animals. If you're really serious, you'll still need a more detailed anatomy book, but for movement (especially of horses and deer and their running patterns) this one is awesome. Just a warning though, the section on dogs is awesome but smaller than the horses, the section on cats is extensive but focuses mostly on big cats, and the section on wolves/foxes/wild dogs is pretty brief - much more of the book is spent on the larger herbivores and some less commonly studied animals like kangaroos, camels, rabbits, and a big section on bears.

What a fantastic read!! In Ariel's Journey, the young girls embark on a journey forcing them to realize that what was once considered a problem before their journey began (a typical conflict among tween friends) really wasn't such a big issue in comparison with they were chosen to accomplish. These once naïve girls, turn into brave and majestic warriors as they fulfill their mission for peace and goodness. They become strong and focused as they bond with one another and their Icelandic horses in order to bring peace to Iceland. There is also very knowledgeable information on the Icelandic breed of horses as well. I look forward to reading each book in this series!

At first I was a little skeptical of the plot in Ariel's Journey... I mean, teenage girls traveling back in time to Iceland with magical horses? However, after finishing the book, I'm a BELIEVER! The story moves along at a nice pace and the characters are very well-developed. Kane and Wood give special attention to the little details that make each character endearing, such as Andrea's wild "morning hair" and the unrestrained enthusiasm that twelve-year-olds Kim and Darcy share for pretty much anything that comes their way. This story not only encourages "girl power" and teaches young women that they DO have the inner strength to accomplish great things, it is also rather gritty and realistic in surprising ways. The girls actually charge into battle wielding swords and there is some blood and gore! Ariel's Journey achieves a perfect balance of adventure, dialogue, romance, and female bonding. I have to admit that I became very attached to the characters and was sad when they arrived home, ready to resume their normal lives in modern society. Luckily I can take comfort in the fact that book #2 is coming out soon. I can't wait to see what happens next with Princessa, Skessa, Ariel, Hela, and Kedja and their brave young riders!

Cute book about kids going back in time and visiting Iceland 800 years ago. Two things I liked a lot about it. It depicted Icelandic horses as being very wise and having magical powers. If you know any Icelandic horses, you'll know how they really seem to have those qualities. I liked that the teenage girls in the story developed into skilled warriors who rescue others instead of being rescued. Girls need to read more books like this. I hope these authors continue writing. People who like this book will enjoy an older book called "Cloud Horse" by Miriam Pinkwater. Annie

Ariel's Journey is an excellent book for teens and adults. It is a story that shows the true relationship a rider can have with their horse. Horses (especially the Icelandic breed) like humans have their own unique traits and personalities. This story describes the ability of horses to bond with their riders in a mystical way. It is a great adventure story filled with twists and surprises to keep you on the edge of your seat. It also teaches you a great deal about the Icelandic horse breed and their homeland.
I enjoyed the story from beginning to end. Each chapter leaves you wanting more, therefore, making it hard to put the book down. I am anxiously awaiting the release of the next story.

I enjoyed Ariel's journey! was an easy read, very interesting and informative. I especialy enjoyed the unexpected twist in the story. I also felt it was a real life relationship learning tool for tweens that will read the book. Its a tough time for girls in this real part of their lives and this book tells what can happen when you can put those things aside. The authors did a particularly great job in character descriptions of both the girls on the journey and the horses that were their friends.

My grand daughter's are anxious to get started building! I bought this and the Stokes Guide to Bats. They love the books. Easy to use and with a little help 8 & 10 years-old understand the blueprints.

Maybe I'm too sold on what's marketed as variety.

I agree with what other reviewers have said, that these are good bathouses and the instructions are easy to follow. I just wish there were a little more variety in terms of design.

The book, by the way, over and above the houses does have some reference information on bats including where to put the houses. That was helpful.

If you're into bats, and would like to make your own houses, this is the book I would recommend.

Lots of good information in here. This book went into detail that I'd never even thought about. Definitely worth a buy if you want a good house that will attract bats.

I was a bit annoyed to open the package from Amazon and see this glorified pamphlet inside. "There goes ten bucks!" I thought. Don't let the size fool you, though. When I opened the booklet and started flipping through, I saw that it really is an excellent guide. It is far superior to anything else I have seen on the subject. I have seen bat houses for sale in my area that do not come close to meeting the well researched guidelines described in this book. Worth buying, definitely. I just wanted to combat the mosquitos in my neighborhood -- now I will likely join the Bat Conservancy and build houses for any friends who ask.

This is a very concise and thorough book on how to construct a successful bat house.

I love this book and so does my toddler. We have read it many, many times and immensely enjoy both the story and the illustrations. I don't mind reading it over and over because I feel like I see some new detail in the illustration that I didn't see the first 50 times we read it together. It's a delight for anyone reading it.

The consequences were far reaching and wide ranging when one little bug sneezed - just what happens, it ripples out and are quite fun. The illustrations are rich and warm, soft curves and good colours with lots going on in each to maintain interest in repeated readings of it.

This has beautiful rhythm to it and is easy for children to get predictive about, learning to anticipate and the value of language, and rhythm.

As an adult I get a bit bored with it - it is quite fun but not for repeated readings, but it is high on the reading request list at home so it gets read repeatedly at the moment.

My [...] loves this book. You can have so much fun with it as the book builds from a little bug sneezing to a out of control circus parade. The rhymes are well-done. Good for all ages.

This is one of Dr. Suess's books written under his pseudonym Rosetta Stone. This book shows once again what an amazingly clever man he was. Each of my children love this book. And I just finished reading it to my youngest son's preschool class. They enjoyed it so much they asked me to read it a second time! It is a fun and extremely enjoyable book for everyone!!!

Why this was published under a pen name, I'll never understand. In my opinion, it's one of Dr. Seuss' best books. The rhyme is easy to remember for toddlers, the images are bright and fun, the book about the little bug's sneeze and the major consequences thereafter is a brilliant encapsulation of chaos theory and the beautifully illustrates the fact that a small event can trigger larger, unforeseen events. Once we discovered this book, it became a nightly read. Highly recommended.

In this book, the saddle club girls have to tell a story about before they rode. Stevie and Lisa can do it, but Carole has to pretend that a pony is a dog! This book is just so funny! Of course it is good, because why would I be reading the saddle club still if they were boring?!

This is an awesome book.Possibly my favorite.I'm so glad I read it (three times)!If you like the Saddle Club,you have to read it. (p.s.I'm not in one of those poor excuses for a Saddle Club such as the 'Stable Club'.I just like to read them,and acctually appreciate them.)

This book is great! I love The Saddle Club, but this is one of the best. When the 3 members of the saddle club try to tell Deborah, Max's wife, about a time before they rode horses, it turns out that all of their stories turned out to be related to horses. I highly recomend this book!

This book was very good. It is my most favorite of all the Super Editions. I had always wondered what the 3 girls lives had been like. I really enjoyed the book!

This book is TOTALLY AWESOME! DEFINATLY one of Bonnie's best. You see, Debora,(Max's wife) is getting ready to have a baby. And Debora asks The Saddle Club to tell her a story, THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HORSES! LISA tells about how her mother sent her to "Charm School." STEVIE tells about some of the "Pranks" she played when she was young. And CAROLE tells about how she found a "Puppy Dog",NOT! A LIE TO BE SURE! (A fun lie, I might add.) The, "Puppy Dog" was really a horse, OF CORSE!

My son recently started preschool and I remembered I loved this book as a child. I particularly remember how vibrant the pictures were and how my imagination ran wild with them. It was a great way to prepare him for his first day of school and one we continue to read over and over and over! A definate classic!

Book shows that Sister is nervous about starting kindergarten. She meets the teacher Mrs. Honey before school starts. First she is nervous but soon she starts to relax and enjoy herself and have fun. I love the part where she holds another kindergartener's hand on the bus. So often little kids only think of themselves and not others.

this book is ok .One reason is because it shows you not to judge things you haven,t tried.Another is If people dont trie something then help them do it.This is what i think of this book.

I really loved this book as a kid because I loved all the illustrations and I loved kindergarten as well. I was volunteering at a kindergarten class one time and read this book to the kids and they loved it and were so happy for some reason when I told them I have the book at home too :) It's a good book to prepare your child for daycare, preschool or kindergarten if they're having anxiety about going.

If you're looking for a book to introduce your child to what happens at school, then look no further. Sister Bear will be going to school for the first time in this book and in preparation, Mama takes her to see her kindergarten teacher for lunch. She has a wonderful time and then brother takes her to school with him and helps her get on the bus. Sister is kind and holds the hand of another little bear who seems very afraid and they go into class together. That part was really sweet! This book does a wonderful job in teaching children what school is about and what to expect. If Brother and Sister can do it, then we can too! This is a great hit at our house and I highly recommend it!

This is an interesting book I'd found at the library, and ordered it on Amazon as soon as I could. It tells four different stories per page, and you have to figure out which story goes where, and when each one starts and ends, and how they're all connected somehow. I really like this one more than the children do. It's too illogical for most of them.

I find that I can follow the connection between the stories better with each reading. It is one of my 10 favorite children's books of all time.

Black and White is a children's picture book, but I have shared it not only with little ones but also with groups of high school juniors and a group of adults who also enjoyed the fun in this book. The "warning" on the title page tells you thatthis could be one story or four stories. Each page offers four quadrants with a story in each, and it is up to the readers to put the pieces together. It is a great book to read with others and have a ball as you play with the author through a lot of fun!

Simply geniusly told, it's amazing how someone can come up with such a story-riddle. Is it four stories or is it one story? Certain to spark discussions as one hint after the other reveals a little more. A book unlike any other. Smart and fun entertainment. Beautifully illustrated. David Macaulay at his best.

I bought this book because of the author's reputation and was not disappointed. Several story lines appear to occur simultaneously and enjoyably. I plan to use this book with small groups of students and ask each student to narrate a different story line. This is a fairly complex picture book that I'm sure all will enjoy.

David Macaulay is known for his architectural books: Pyramid, Castle, and City: a Story of Roman Planning and Construction and their accompanying videos. However, this Caldecott winner is a demonstration of that soaring Macaulay imagination!

Macaulay posts this warning right on the title page: "This book appears to contain a number of stories that do not necessarily occur at the same time. Then again, it may contain only one story. In any event, careful inspection of both words and pictures is recommended."

I'll say this at the beginning: As a children's librarian, I would never read or show this to a class. There is no way to explain this complicated, interconnected book of four stories that run into and out of each other.

Here is how they look. There are four stories on the two adjoining pages with two stories per page. Each story has predominant colors of blue, green, brown, and black and white. Colors and patterns spill and slip from one story to the next, but the thrust of the story is done in black and white. It must be noted that Macaulay is NOT saying that everything is black and white. Oh no! If anything he is saying that everything is NOT black and white, but he uses black and white, both words and pictures, to say it.

What I just wrote in that last sentence gives a sense of the story. It is brilliantly creative! I had a special story time with some gifted students last year, second graders. They had so much fun with this book. I had to get them started on "reading" the pictures (this is a picture book with narrative on each story block), but once they caught on, they rip-roared with the story!!

Remember the admonition to stay in the lines and not think outside the box. David Macaulay failed that class because he both colors outside the lines--literally--and his characters get outside their cartoon boxes and into each other's boxes. The story is one big paean to imagination, creativity, whimsy, flight of fancy, freedom to explore, and freedom to see the Big Picture.

Wow, this is one great book. Every child should own it! I certainly do!

This book touched my heart, to actually realize how one woman could bome so close to animals that we look at and call beasts. The compassion that one woman had is enough to change they way you may think about how we live. And once you read this book, dont forget that it is a true story. After seeing what Joyce had done wither her love for animals, any dream can come true.

Born Free
Joy Adamson
1960
ISBN: 0-375-71438-3
196 pages

When Elsa's natural instincts soften, reality becomes harder and harder to face.
After a young lioness has been raised and transformed from fierce predator to loving house
cat by her owner Joy, the thought of releasing Elsa into the wild seems to be the greatest
challenge the two have had to face.
Born Free is a true story about a woman ,Joy, and a lioness ,Elsa. Joy's husband
was a game warden in Africa, so the two went on many safaris together. During one of these
safaris, they find three orphaned lion cubs and decide to raise and take care of them during
their cub life. The day finally arrives when the cubs are to be shipped to a European zoo,
and Joy just cannot part with the smallest cub, Elsa. Elsa stays with the two of them and
becomes part of the family for many months. Between all of the fun and
suspense, the truth of the matter finally reveals itself. Elsa, though removed of all the natural
instincts she needs to survive, must soon be permanently released into the wild.
Filled with laughter and excitement, Born Free is a terrific bittersweet adventure,
giving people the ability to learn about a miraculous breakthrough in human and animal
interaction. This book is a timeless classic that you can read again
and again.
By: Amy Schmidt

Animals have always been a favorite topic of mine, but as a young person who just happened to find a copy of this book some 39 years ago, with the cover torn off, I consider it one of the great discoveries of my life. It was summertime, and I was headed to the 7th grade. I wasn't much of a reader until that momentous day. The story of Elsa and the Adamsons totally transported me to another place, and many wondrous adventures in Africa. Due much to this book, I now am a voracious reader. The story is heartwarming, and is the reason I insisted my 7th grade son read it for his current book report.

Whether you're 9 or 99, Elsa's antics and her loving bond with Joy and George will capture your heart. I guarantee it. And with Africa's Lion population dwindling to probably less than 30,000 today, I can't think of a more timely book, in honour of conserving their remaining habitat. Especially when one considers that Africa had over 100,000 Lions when I first read it.

This book is one of my favorites. This book tells you the story of a bond between a hunan and a lioness. This is a great book because it shows you a different side of wild animals and the way they live. When you read it, you will get the excitement as if you are along on the safari with them!

My first introduction to the Born Free books when I was a child learning to read in school. And what a great introduction to reading it was. The story of Elsa and the Adamsons who saved her life as a cub along with her sisters and raised her brought me into a world of wanting to be there with all the animals and see Africa. This seemed to be treated more as a children's book in my time than an adult book. The idea of the book was to teach people the importance of environmental conservation awareness. The first book, tells Elsa's early life from a cub raised by Joy and George Adamson and their pet rock hyrax, Pati. Joy is Elsa's surrogate mom and with great pains to teach Elsa the skills to survive in the wild. With lots of work Joy did it with success that Elsa was capable of living in the wild again. They released her near her birthplace and hoping Elsa would find and connect with her pride-in which she did. There is the tragedy not long afterward I had read this amazing story that Elsa had died in the Kenya bush of disease. Something of life that I learned early in my life that it was reality in the wilds of Africa or anywhere for that matter. But the cycle of life lives on in Elsa's pride. Still another grim incident ended the lives of Joy and George Adamson. Both were found murdered.

Joy Adamson has left behind a legacy of these fascinating books that moves us to treat our world with respect and have a better understanding between human-animal relationship. Joy Adamson before her death had also written, 'Living Free: Elsa and her Cubs' and 'Forever Free: Elsa's Pride.' Her family extended even further across the grasslands of Africa as she tells about them in her other books, 'The Spotted Sphinx' (about Pippa the Cheetah), 'Pippa's Challenge,' 'Pippa: The Cheetah and her Cubs,' 'Queen of Shaba: The Story of an African Leopard,' and 'Friends of the Forest.' Joy Adamson's book 'Peoples of Kenya' reflects upon the life of the Kenyan people, her concern for the people welfare there and their struggles to make an existence in a harsh, beautiful land. If you want to know more about Joy Adamson read her autobiography, 'The Searching Spirit.'

This book, a story without words, was charming, strange and fun to look at wth the three and a half year olds!

When I first saw this book, I thought, "Oh, my gosh! A dog finding a bug! Bore snore!" But as I really got into the plot of the story, I began to realize,"Wow, I can totally picture words to this story! It's creative! It's funny! It's amazing!" A lot of thought and care went into this book. I think this book is a great way for anyone to discover the art of imagination! -J age 10

This book is alluring in its elegant simplicity. It asks so much of the reader and gives even more back. What a wonderful way to entice a pre-reader or early reader into the joy of books. The experience of reading Bow Wow with a toddler, preschooler, or young school-aged child is an adventure of shared thoughts and smiles, intimate conversation in which the child and adult learn anew about themselves and each other. This is the kind of book, like Sandra Boynton's and Margaret Wise Brown's,that sparks delightful cuddle-time chat about the surreal,absurd predicaments of everyday life. This is a book that inspires budding readers to cherish books. For adults weary of eating broken alphabet cookies and reading crapified television advertising masquerading as storybooks,for adults who sometimes struggle with reading,this book will be a cool drink of water. -a Mom

Newgarden's illustrations are brilliant. The book and story is filled with laugh-out-loud surprises and is a real a delight. Before giving it to our daughters, my husband and I reviewed it together and couldn't wait to catch up with Bow Wow's adventure as we turned the pages. I highly recommend this book for people of all ages!

Auntie H sent my girls this book...they love these wordless books. At age 2 and 4 who needs words? they love to tell the story...not frustrated at not being able to read....they clearly read along as the story unfolds. They feel confident and have the time of their lives...we all laugh outload!

My sister sent all three of the Bow-Wow books to my 4-y-o daughter. She LOVES them all. She's in that stage where she will look at the pictures in a book & make up her own story to "read" to us. These books are so expressive & creative! There is enough silliness & fun without being ridiculous. Some authors miss that target by a long shot. But not these two! What a great team!!! Keep up the good work!!!

I picked this book up for me because of the beautiful artwork. The detail, color and composition make you wish you could take a seat in the woods and experience the forest first hand. But then, I realized this book also caught the attention of my son. At 12 months old, he began to bring books to my husband and I to read, and this was one of his selections often. To my delight, a few months later, he started imitating the actions of stretching, yawning, sneezing and scratching as I read. At 18-months old, he still gets excited to read this book, and I still love studying the artwork (to find the well-hidden McCue (the artist) signatures)...I've only found a few when there's a bouncing boy on your lap.

I love reading this book to my boys! We love the beautiful illustrations but I have no idea how to find the hidden McCues. At first I thought, is it that mouse? But he only makes a couple of appearances...it can't be the ladybugs and grasshoppers because those are obvious, so I guess they are actual words...but I have yet to find one!

The book and pictures are nice, but it is the puzzle of finding the 13 hidden "McCue" words painted into the pictures that is great. It usually takes me about 30 minutes to read this book to my kid because I spend so long straining my eyes to find the hidden words. Perhaps I need to upgrade from the board book version I have that has such small illustrations!

This is just the most precious book. The illustrations are beautiful and the story invites interaction with the child by having them make the sounds in the story, such as a bee buzzing or a sneeze. I can't imagine anyone not loving this book. But don't get all sentimental about bunnies and run out and get one for your young child- they require a lot of space and adult attention to be happy, so stick to the pictures in the book, unless you do your research on caring for bunnies and have lots of extra time on your hands (and who does, with young children?)

My 23 month old daughter LOVES this book - the first time I read it, she wanted to hear it again. I act out all the noises and actions in the book, and she thinks it's a charm. Highly recommended - I love Lisa McCue's illustrations.