A Place to Start a Family: Poems About Creatures That Build, by David L. Harrison/Illustrated by Giles Laroche, (Jan. 2018, Charlesbridge), $17.99, ISBN: 9781580897488Recommended for readers ages 5-9
A nice meeting of prose and science, A Place to Start a Family includes 12 poems about creatures that build homes to house their families. Organized into poems for animals who build underground, like prairie dogs and moles; on land, like the cobra or termite; in water, like the beaver or pufferfish; in the air, like storks and wasps, each poem is illustrated with attractive, textured mixed media artwork. Poems are brief, factual, and some bring a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor to nature. Witness the poem in praise of the White-Spotted Pufferfish: With tail and fin/hoping he/will soon charm/a willing she/he works hard/day and night/Will he win a mate?/He might. More information about each animal, including scientific names, descriptive paragraphs, and further resources, are available at the end. Thanks to the authors and editors for recommending readers visit the library to learn more! A nice additional resource for animal and poetry collections.
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