You Can't Lay Egg If Elephant

You can't lay an egg if you're an elephant! So how are baby elephants born? What about baby penguins or baby chickens? Do they come from eggs? What about humans? This informative text examines the difference between animals that lay eggs and animals that give birth to live babies. Each chapter describes how different kinds of animals are born and is accompanied by humorous poems and whimsical artwork that make learning biology fun for young readers.

You can't lay an egg if you're an elephant! So how are baby elephants born? What about baby penguins or baby chickens? Do they come from eggs? What about humans? This informative text examines the difference between animals that lay eggs and animals that give birth to live babies. Each chapter describes how different kinds of animals are born and is accompanied by humorous poems and whimsical artwork that make learning biology fun for young readers.

Kathy PiehlCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information. - School Library Journal

Gr 2-4
Although the introduction hints at a general overview of animal reproduction, Ehrlich discusses only birds and mammals. He gives facts about small birds such as robins and large ones such as ostriches but provides the most detail about emperor penguins. He never mentions fish, reptiles, amphibians, or insects that lay eggs or acknowledges that mammals have their start as an egg inside their mother. Yet, he devotes two pages to egg-laying mammals like the platypus. Inserted between straightforward explanations are poems of varying lengths. For example, the spiny anteaters opine, "Our rarity is quite extreme./We're egg-laying, mammalian monotremes!" The final chapter compares developmental milestones of chimps and humans from birth to six years. Haley's cartoon art is pleasant enough to hold browsers' attention for a while, but an attractive layout can't salvage a hodgepodge of information.

Fred Ehrlich, a pediatrician and child psychiatrist, has spent dozens of years advising families on the emotional and physical care of young children. He is the author of many highly acclaimed children's books.

Amanda Haley holds a B.F.A. from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She lives in Virginia with her husband and their golden retriever, Sally.