These Are Animals

These Are Animals by Daniel Egneus
Published by Bloomsbury
Date: 1 April 2018
R.R.P. $24.99

These are animals is one of the most fun books I have read to a group of children in a while.  It was great to see them love the book as much as I did, which is why it is now one of my favourite go to books for Storytime sessions.

These Are Animals engages the children with lines such as ‘Polar bears have huge paws’ and ‘…and lions ROOOAR.’ It teaches children the sounds animals make, about the stripes on their bodies, how they move, and how they live.  It is well-paced and the words flow naturally throughout.  What makes it a great book to read out aloud is the words allow for the different use of tone and pitch, this adds a bit of whimsy to the story.

The illustrations are really something fantastic, they’re lively, colourful and fun.  Each page has a lot to look at and will retain a child’s interest even when just flicking through the pages themselves.

Some of the animals may be unfamiliar to your child, depending on what part of the world you live in.  An example being, many Australian children may not know what a woodpecker is but are really familiar with spiders.  This provides opportunity for a further exploration of animals through other resources, which makes it a good book to share with kindergarten and other school aged children.

The words flow well throughout the book but what I find interesting is that they have grouped the animals together.  An example being…‘These Are Grassland Animals’ & ‘These Are Woodland Animals;’ Grouping the animals like this not only teach the children but adults also, in understanding what part of the world and types of area the animals live in.

This book is perfectly suited to both toddlers and preschooler, and as mentioned previously school aged children.  For toddlers and preschools, much of the story is engaging with the use of animal noises and lively words which maintain their attention.  The book can be used in different ways depending on the age of your child or group, which is why I think it is a versatile and enjoyable book to share.

Thank you to Bloomsbury for the opportunity to read and review this book.  All opinions and photographs are my own.