Nonfiction Monday: How to clean a hippopotamus: a look at unusual animal partnerships by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page

In a series of well-designed panels, squares, and block text, Jenkins and Page present another fascinating animal fact book for preschool and elementary listeners and readers. Symbiotic relationships, from the well-know to the obscure, from marine iguanas to warthogs, are explained and illustrated in simple text.

I was a little puzzled by the apparently random bold text. Would this help early readers? I'm not sure. The art is classic Jenkins and is perfectly downsized to fit into the small panels without losing details or clarity. The end material includes a more detailed explanation of symbiosis and the size, habitat, and diet of all the animals listed. There's also a short list of further resources.

Verdict: As always, Jenkins' and Page's work is a necessity for the library collection


ISBN: 978-0547245157; Published May 2010 by Houghton Mifflin; Borrowed from the library; Purchased for the library