Nature Unfolds the Poles

School Library Journal

Gr 4-8-Each volume opens with two foldout panoramas of related ecological vistas, one horizontal, the other vertical. The first book includes the Amazon River basin and the rainforest while the second explores the Antarctic and Arctic regions. Following each foldout is a series of spreads that provide more detail about one quadrant of the larger work. For example, the Amazon swamplands are subdivided into estuary, wetlands, marsh land, and forest edge. A paragraph summarizes the characteristics of each area. The accompanying pages contain numerous small pictures of and a few sentences about indigenous animals. Orr's masterful illustrations fill the pages with color and movement and unflinchingly depict birth and death. Although the foldout views show the relative sizes of animals, those proportions are lost in the close-ups, where an anaconda doesn't appear much larger than a spoonbill. Keys to each panoramic scene are included. Libraries owning Moira Butterfield and Orr's Nature Cross-Sections (DK, 1995) plus introductions to the polar regions and/or tropical rainforest can probably forgo these titles. However, where reader interest or curriculum requirements warrant additional coverage, these books could serve as supplementary materials.-Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.