Bashful Ball Pythons

April 1, 2013

K-Gr 2-This series is an odd melding of fact with fiction. The books begin with five spreads of basic information about the featured pet, followed by an eight-page illustrated story in rhyme. The simple texts are accessible to beginning readers, but there is little here for researchers who want to know how to feed, house, and take care of these animals. The stories, which sometimes add humor, feature multicultural children and their pets but don't provide additional facts. The stock photos clearly show the creatures, though often their owners (mentioned in the text) are not in view. Each title also contains a page of "Fun Facts," a quiz, and a note cautioning readers to further research the needs of unusual animals before bringing one home. PowerKids's "Classroom Pets" series (2007) covers some of the same creatures in more detail, though it is at a higher reading level.

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2013
Following a common introduction to unusual pets and a brief list of species-specific "basics," each of these books features four double-page spreads of general facts about the animal, followed by an eight-page story in singsongy rhyme accompanied by cartoony illustrations. The information is minimal; the photographs on the nonfiction pages are engaging. "Fun Facts" and a quiz are appended. Glos.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)