cover image Animal-Go-Round: Turn the Wheel and See the Animals Grow

Animal-Go-Round: Turn the Wheel and See the Animals Grow

Johnny Morris. DK Publishing (Dorling Kindersley), $12.95 (18pp) ISBN 978-1-56458-329-1

Augmenting the trademark Dorling Kindersley design, a paper wheel is set into every spread of this appealing book. The wheel turns to reveal photographs of four distinct stages of growth of eight different creatures, including kittens, caterpillars, puppies and tadpoles. A first-person narrative (``I am a wiggly tadpole. I have a long tail and no legs'') appears under each phase pictured on the wheel. The tiny silhouettes which border each wheel typify the book's attention to detail. Meanwhile, the spreads place each creature into context: chicks are seen with mother hen; a caterpillar munches on leaves and, in a smaller photograph on the opposite page, hatches from its cocoon. A third-person text tells informative, often whimsical stories (``Sheep like being together in a flock. Perhaps they tell each other nursery rhymes!''). Bound to please young readers. Ages 3-up. (Sept.)