Review by Booklist Review
Gr. 3-5. Similar in concept to Pringle's An Extraordinary Life: The Story of a Monarch Butterfly (2000), this handsome, large-format book, illustrated by Bob Marstall, introduces dragonflies through the story of a single green darner, Anax. It begins with two dragonflies mating in a swamp in western New York State. One of the eggs hatches, and Anax goes through the protonymph and nymph stages. He grows and molts several times before emerging as an adult and living in the air rather than the water. When autumn comes, Anax begins his migration to a pond in Florida. There he mates and begins the cycle once more. The book offers plenty of detail about Anax's body structures, metamorphoses, habits, and environment. Though many children researching an animal prefer "just the facts" rather than reading about a single example of the species, there's a great deal about dragonflies to be learned from this well-written account. Marstall's paintings include beautiful landscapes as well as many clear, enlarged views of Anax and the creatures around him. Backmatter includes advice on caring for dragonfly nymphs, a bibliography of books and articles, and a list of dragonfly Web sites.--Carolyn Phelan
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-5-Like An Extraordinary Life: The Story of a Monarch Butterfly (Orchard, 1997), this book is carefully researched and extraordinarily detailed in text and art. Readers follow one particular green darner, Anax, from his birth in a swamp in New York to mating and death in a Florida pond. Specific incidents in his life are augmented with more general information about dragonflies and damselflies. Sidebars give facts about other creatures that share his habitats. Information on raising dragonfly nymphs for study is appended, and several Web sites are suggested. In Marstall's watercolor-and-oil paintings, soft greens and browns predominate. This is an exemplary nature-study book-accurate, explicit, and satisfyingly complete.-Ellen Heath, Orchard School, Ridgewood, NJ (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Intermediate) Pringle tells a richly detailed story of one green darner dragonfly, Anax, and his journey from hatching in a New York state swamp to mating and dying in a Florida pond. Rarely do books of this nature delve so deeply into one species and its life cycle, migration, habitats, and interactions with other animals and plants. The narrative is packed with factual information yet is not tiresome to read. Indeed, the depth of the explanations may further stimulate readers' interest in dragonflies and other winged insects. Marstell's delicate watercolor and oil illustrations in predominately light browns and greens provide intricate detail and close-up views of the stages of dragonfly anatomical development. Throughout the book, interesting tidbits about dragonflies, the researchers who study them, and related scientific facts can be found in the margins. Directions for catching and caring for dragonfly nymphs at the end of the book encourage observation of several of the molting stages. Suggested resources for further reading are plentiful, though readers should be aware that many of the sources listed (and all of the websites) are for an older audience than that of the book. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The author of many fine science titles here presents the saga of a dragonfly, born in a swamp in upstate New York and destined to travel to Florida to fertilize eggs and die. The birth, growth, and development of this deceptively delicate creature is told in language both clear and lyrical, following a single egg from hatching to protonymph, through many molts to mature nymph, and finally to adulthood. There are enemies at every turn: frogs, salamanders, spiders, birds, and fish to name only a few; it's a marvel that any dragonfly survives. The detail of the text is awesome; for example, the dragonfly nymph has a deadly lower lip, nearly a third the length of the entire nymph. It can shoot out with lightning speed in 25 thousandths of a second, to grasp and capture a prey, then fold up on its hinge when not in use. The illustrator does an outstanding job of showing close-up details of tiny specialized features such as the unique pattern of veins in the dragonfly wings that scientists use to distinguish one species from another. The author concludes with directions for capturing and caring for a dragonfly nymph, books for further reading, Web sites of interest, and an index. Readers who follow the journey of Anax, a lone green darner dragonfly, will gain an appreciation for a most remarkable creature. This is a worthy companion to Pringle's An Extraordinary Life: The Story of the Monarch Butterfly. (1997). (Nonfiction. 9-12)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
