Secrets in the Meadow

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6 To the casual observer the typical meadow presents a peaceful facade, but, in fact, it is alive with a wide variety of animals stuggling to survive. This brief, well-organized overview clearly and simply decribes how numerous species of insects, dear, rabbits, mice, foxes, etc., rear their young, and find shelter and food within the meadow habitat. Sharp black-and-white photos on almost every page complement the text. The photos of baby rabbits and mice inside their nests and insects undergoing the process of metamorphosis are particularly well done. More detailed information on most of the animals described here is available in other titles (Laurence P. Pringle's Discovering the Outdoors Doubleday, 1969; o.p. and Stephen M. Hoffman's What's Under That Rock? Atheneum, 1985 among them). However, there seems to be no other book available for this age level that so clearly describes a meadow ecosystem. A useful addition to the nature-study sections of most school and public libraries. Karey Wehner, San Francisco Public Library