Amazing Animal Babies by Chris Packham and Jason Cockcroft

Many children love animals, but they love baby animals even more. Would you rather watch a dog or watch a puppy? A cat or a kitten? A meerkat or a smaller meerkat? The answer is a no brainer to most children who enjoy the wide-eyed stumbling of youth that is not dissimilar to their own. However, someone needs to give them the facts about baby animals and who better than wildlife presenter Chris Packham?

Animals are everywhere and so are their babies. Join a group of explorers as they travel the globe and stand, David Attenborough style, a few metres away from some creatures and observe them. From mammals, birds, fish and lizards – there is a whole world of fluffy/slimy, cute/ugly juvenile animals to see.

The child encyclopaedia in recent years has gone down the route of crazy colour images and only a few facts, therefore, it is nice for the pace to slow down in a book like Packham's Amazing Baby Animals. There is an old fashioned feel to proceedings that has the same dry and educational approach as the Puffin books. Packham takes us on a seemingly rather random journey spying on animals and their children. A double spread may have two of three different creatures and tell us some facts about them – did you know that some lizard babies hide in trees to prevent their parents from eating them?

Jason Cockcroft is tasked with giving a little light to Packham's wildlife programme style and he does a decent job. The illustrations are approachable for a child, whilst still looking realistic. Perhaps in a way they are a little dull, but this is an accusation you could make of the whole book. Ask yourself why a child would pick up a book about baby animals; to be entertained or informed? I imagine that children would like both, but here the emphasis is on education.

That is not to say the book is without merit, as an approachable academic text for small children it works. The layout is also very nice, large print and colourful images means that it catches the eye. You do not always get a sense of the author in a non-fiction, but here you feel as if Packham wants to appeal to the true animal enthusiast and not the child looking for the dayglow antics of a Guinness Book of Records. If you have a child that has a real fascination with animals and may want to be a zoologist then this book would appeal a lot. Other child may find it a little too worthy.

An opposite approach to animal learning can be found in the bright Ultimate Reptileopedia by Christina Wilsdon.

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You can read more book reviews or buy Amazing Animal Babies by Chris Packham and Jason Cockcroft at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Amazing Animal Babies by Chris Packham and Jason Cockcroft at Amazon.com.

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