Review by Booklist Review
One of the foremost illuminators of the animal kingdom here takes a peek beneath the skin. He begins with a single human finger bone, then shows where it fits in the hand, then attaches the arm bones and sets it aside the forelimbs of a mole, spider monkey, gray whale, turtle, and fruit bat to illustrate how they all share the same basic structure. Similar comparisons take a look at feet, legs, rib cages, necks, and heads, almost always using a consistent scale to display the relative size of elephant and stork legs or a giraffe and human neck. Jenkins provides concise chunks of text alongside his always impressive cut-paper collages, which are a little more understated than in some of his other dynamic books (the color scheme ranges from ashy white to dusty gray, with a few touches of calcified yellow). But the clean design of the intricate skeletons set against solid background colors is striking and provides a wonderful visual introduction to what keeps us all upright. Thoughtful back matter probes deeper into bone-related science concepts.--Chipman, Ian Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-6-From the life-sized human skull grinning out from the brick-red cover to a complete skeleton waving goodbye from a gatefold late in the book, bones are given an entertaining and fresh treatment. Beginning with the opening spread of life-sized animal bones, human bones are quantified and qualified. Hands, feet, femurs, ribs, spine, and skull are shown and compared to other species. Symmetry and joints as well as adaptations for survival are introduced. Humor abounds in the illustrations as well as in subheadings such as, "That's a Handful," "Big Foot," and "Head Case." Readers will be lured in by interactive touches like "What bone is this?" and the "Some Assembly Required" spread with all 206 adult human bones unlabeled and grouped by body area. Displayed against a navy-blue background, the spread opens to the burnt sienna gatefold mentioned above. Two additional gatefolds include a small python (200 ribs) and a collection of skulls. Jenkins's characteristic cut-paper collages in mottled creams and grays are perfectly suited to the topic and contrasted against solid jewel-tone, full-bleed backgrounds. The precise and scaled representations (many life size) are clearly labeled. Text, other than an opening page, is limited and supports the highly visual and sophisticated treatment. A "More About Bones" spread completes the book with a hodgepodge of fascinating facts. With applications that range from anatomy to evolution and mathematics, this book will find a place in every collection.-Carol S. Surges, McKinley Elementary School, Wauwatosa, WI (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
Bones of all shapes and sizes glow like jewels on richly colored backgrounds, allowing readers to pore over each and every nuance of Jenkins's intricate cut-paper illustrations. The discussion smartly begins with human anatomy, where the bones of an adult hand invit-ingly displayed at actual size make placing one's own hand on top-and learning about bone structure-irresistible. Turn the page, and a comparative presentation of the forelimb bones of five other animals permits close observation of the similarities and differences among species. This format works well throughout the book for topics that include the basic structures (e.g., joints) and functions (support, motion, protection) of the skeletal system. Each illustration is carefully labeled by animal name and whether or not it is actual size, although detailed bone names are absent. Foldout pages allow python and human skeletons to be introduced in even finer detail. The final pages of the book include a collection of quirky bone facts. 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
Jenkins's signature collages are ideal for illustrating this introduction to the way bones work in humans and other mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and most fish. Organized roughly by body part, from hands and feet to supporting limbs, ribs and heads, these cut-paper shapes demonstrate the similarities in vertebrate skeletons, showing comparative sizes and adaptations. Set on a black or deeply colored background, the bones stand out. The text is secondary: a jokey title ("Got Your Back," "Head Case"), followed by a sentence or short paragraph for each topic printed in white in a large, legible typeface. Fold-out pages add interest, especially when the 206 bones of the human body, disassembled on a double-page spread, are reassembled inside. The scale is given for most pictures. An afterword offers further facts about what bones are made of, the cartilage of sharks and exoskeletons of spiders and snails, and fossils. This is a book for young browsers, without page numbers, index, sources or suggestions for further reading. That's a shame, since it's sure to leave readers wanting more. (Informational picture book. 6-10)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
