Book Reviews by Carol Neeland for LS 5603: Literature for Children and Young Adults

Summary: 

This book points out the record holders of the animal world: the biggest, strongest, fastest, slowest, oldest, and smallest animals. On each page there are illustrations made with paper cut outs. In addition, each page shows a diagram that shows a comparison of the animal to something the human can easily relate to, such as a human figure or a human hand.

Critical Analysis: 

This book can be read for pleasure or appreciated for its factual information, or both. The larger text read alone is even appropriate for preschoolers as it provides basic information explained by the picture, “The cheetah can run faster than any other animal.” When accompanied by the information written in small text, the reader also learns additional details: 

“A cheetah can reach speeds of over 60 miles an hour, but only for a few hundred feet. When it chases another fast animal, such as an antelope, the cheetah must catch it quickly.” 

The small diagrams on each page provide helpful comparisons to help children understand just how large, small, or strong an animal is. For example, on the page that says, “The strongest animal, for its size, is the ant” there is a diagram of an ant holding five ants over its head as if they were on a barbell. The other half of the diagram shows a man holding one man over his head. This comparison shows that the ant can carry five times his own weight. 

The main illustrations on each page are bright and unique. They appear to be made with handmade paper. These also help illustrate the size of the large and long animals. For example, the blue whale’s head is on the left side of a double-page spread. His body is on the right side of a double-page spread, and the reader must turn the page to see his tail. Similarly, the sun jellyfish which is even longer than the blue whale is spread across three pages to illustrate just how long it is. 

Another helpful feature of the book, especially for older readers and adults, is the chart on the last page. It shows the name of each animal, the record it holds, its size, diet, and range (where it lives). I turned to this page to find out if I might be running into a bird spider in my Asian travels. Fortunately, I won’t. 

Review Excerpt: 

Large, clear print; fascinating facts; and beautiful, detailed, cut-paper collages make this excellent title a delight. One main fact is presented per spread about each of 14 animals, e.g., “The Etruscan shrew, the world’s smallest mammal, could sleep in a teaspoon.” Two more relevant facts are given in smaller print. Silhouette drawings show comparative sizes–the blue whale is shown next to an adult human. The realistic, inventive, textured illustrations, mostly double spreads, flow smoothly from page to page. A helpful chart at the end contains further information about each creature, such as diet and habitat. An all-round superlative effort.

–Jan Shepherd Ross, Dixie Elementary Magnet School, Lexington, KY 

Connections: 

Students who enjoyed this book might want to choose an animal not represented in the book and create their own illustration of the animal with art materials. They could write what is unique about that animal and draw a small diagram to illustrate that unique feature. The following website might be helpful in finding information: 

The Cyber Zoo animal list: http://lsb.syr.edu/projects/cyberzoo/a_list.html  

Students who enjoyed this book might also like these other books by Steve Jenkins: 

Actual Size
What Do You Do with a Tail Like This?
Living Color
What Do You Do When Something Wants To Eat You?
Hottest, Coldest, Highest, Deepest
Big and Little 

Steve Jenkins’ website has information about his books, about making and illustrating books, and about science: 

http://www.stevejenkinsbooks.com  

Bibliographic Data:

Jenkins, Steve. Biggest, Strongest, Fastest. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1995. ISBN Number: 0-395-69701-8

Ross, Jan. “Biggest, Strongest, Fastest” School Library Journal (1995), http://reviews.schoollibraryjournal.com/bd.aspx?isbn=0395697018&pub=sl. (accessed March 11, 2008).

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