Review by Booklist Review
Jenkins' striking paper-collage illustrations nicely complement Pfeffer's clear and engaging text in this successful explanation of what lies beneath the surface of the ocean in and around a coral reef. As the double-page spreads display the variety and vibrancy of the sea creatures finding food and shelter, Pfeffer describes how coral reefs are created, how they're made sturdy (by sea cucumbers spitting out sand, filling in the reef's cracks and crevices), and the ways in which some creatures cooperate with each other, while others interact as predator and prey. One spread, for example, shows how the spiny puffer fish inflates to avoid being swallowed by the ruffle-headed scorpion fish. The structure frames one day and night in the life of a coral reef, making clear that it's just as lively in the dark as it is with sunlight illuminating the action. At the end of the book are Fun Facts as well as less-fun but still important information about the threats to the world's reef environments.--Nolan, Abby Copyright 2009 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-Coral reefs bustle with activity day and night. Paper cutout illustrations capture the vibrant hues of reef animals from tiny coral polyps to a lime-green moray eel gliding past a mucus-enclosed parrot fish. Fact pages identify coral reef locations worldwide and threats to their existence. (c) Copyright 2013. 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
(Primary) Pfeffer introduces young readers to the science of coral reefs, taking them to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia in order to explain the coral life cycle. Her prose in this new series entry recalls that of the original volumes in the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series, using clear and direct sentences packed with factual information to skillfully convey complex scientific ideas to younger readers. In just a few sentences per page, she covers reef formation, diurnal and nocturnal inhabitants, and the reef's symbiotic and predator-prey relationships, including a discussion of the defense mechanisms employed by various marine fauna. Jenkins's tropical-hued, cut-paper illustrations alternate between portrayals of a reef teeming with life and detailed close-ups of individual specimens. Additional facts, including the threats to coral reefs from human actions, are appended. From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
This colorful entry in the long-running Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series introduces the world of coral reefs with simple concepts and Jenkins's signature collage illustrations. Nicely contrasting the large size of one example, Australia's Great Barrier Reef, with the tiny coral polyps that comprise its bulk, Pfeffer goes on to describe polyp reproduction and a variety of sea creatures found in this habitat. With no more than a short paragraph or two per page, her text should be well within the capabilities of early elementary-school readers, although they may need some vocabulary help. The series's landscape format is particularly well suited to the underwater scenes, in which even the background blues vary and the layers of cut and torn textured papers add depth. Would-be divers will enjoy identifying the silhouettes on the end papers: snappers and four-eyed butterfly fish, a shark and flashlight fish, all identified in the text (but they may wonder about the Moorish Idol, which appears nameless on the endpapers and in an early illustration). Two "Find Out More" pages conclude this attractive presentation. (Informational picture book. 5-9) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
