Strange Creatures: The Story of Walter Rothschild and His Museum

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Overview

Walter Rothschild was born into a family of bankers and was nearly the richest boy in the world. He was also so shy he barely spoke. He had no friends, but he loved every creature that crawled, slithered or flew. At the age of seven, Walter saw his first circus parade. He excitedly declared to his parents: "I’m going to collect animals from all over the world and build a museum!" Soon Walter had his first exotic creatures: kangaroos, wallabies and kiwis. From there his collection grew until it threatened to take over the Rothschild estate. Lord Rothschild wanted his son to lead the family business eventually. But Walter...

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Overview

Walter Rothschild was born into a family of bankers and was nearly the richest boy in the world. He was also so shy he barely spoke. He had no friends, but he loved every creature that crawled, slithered or flew. At the age of seven, Walter saw his first circus parade. He excitedly declared to his parents: "I’m going to collect animals from all over the world and build a museum!" Soon Walter had his first exotic creatures: kangaroos, wallabies and kiwis. From there his collection grew until it threatened to take over the Rothschild estate. Lord Rothschild wanted his son to lead the family business eventually. But Walter wouldn’t give up his dream.

Strange Creatures is the story of how a painfully shy boy followed his passion and became a brilliant scientist, forever changing our understanding of the world’s diversity of creatures.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly
Walter Rothschild, the shy eldest son of Lord Nathan Rothschild, never took an interest in the family banking business, instead developing an all-consuming veneration for the wild; at age seven, he began collecting living animals like kangaroos and kiwi birds for his "museum." Judge's expressive watercolors convey Rothschild's inquisitiveness and his parents' angst over such mishaps as a giant lizard escape. When they provide him a building in which to house his collection, he funds expeditions to collect animals, opening the museum's doors after his 24th birthday. Though some might be concerned about the removal of animals from the wild, Judge explains in an appended note that, at that time, "collecting animal specimens was the only way... to study them closely." Children should get a kick out of this 19th-century misfit who relentlessly pursued his unconventional passion. Ages 5–9. (Feb.)
School Library Journal
K-Gr 3—Behind his extreme shyness and speech difficulties, Rothschild had a brilliant mind and endless fascination with exotic animals. When he was seven, he decided his goal was to create a museum filled with specimens of unusual creatures from around the world. Although his parents bought him kangaroos, kiwis, lizards, and other exotic animals, his father insisted that Walter enter his banking business when he became an adult. Using his salary and assets from his family's fortune, the young man financed collectors who traveled around the globe to locate unusual animals and ship the specimens back to England. By the time he was 24, his dream museum had become a reality. Over his lifetime, Rothschild named thousands of new species and published hundreds of scientific papers. He also kept many unusual animals on his estate, including the zebras he used to pull his carriage. Judge's picture-book biography of the shy genius may encourage readers to follow their own creative ideas, although few people possess the wealth of the Rothschilds. Watercolor paintings help readers visualize the Victorian era. An extensive author's note provides more details about the zoologist's life and explains how wildlife studies have changed since his time. The web addresses in the book for the Natural History Museum at Tring and the Natural History Museum, London, are incorrect. Although the unusual subject is handled adequately, this title is a supplemental purchase for most libraries.—Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato
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Kirkus Reviews

It's hard to imagine crowds of readers responding to this fictionalized portrait of a 19th-century gentleman scientist, though author-illustrator Judge's admiration for his achievements is clear. Words and pictures paint a vivid if necessarily superficial picture of Walter Rothschild, born in 1868 into a privileged British family. The author imagines his childhood interactions with his bewildered parents then briefly describes his prodigious accomplishments. Even with "the help of two lifelong assistants," producing 1,200 print pieces (a mix of books and scientific papers) and naming more than 5,000 species is an amazing feat. Rothschild also established a museum and sponsored numerous scientific expeditions. Energetic, expressive paintings, many with unusual perspectives, fill the pages. Not surprisingly, the odd creatures that fascinated Walter are among the most engaging characters, like the giant lizard that peers out from Walter's mother's lily bed. Human characters are more sketchily drawn, which emphasizes Walter's preoccupation with the natural world but may serve to further distance readers. Intriguing but obscure, this will probably be best appreciated by a certain kind of quirky boy reader. (author's note, references, websites)(Picture book. 6-9)

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781423113898
  • Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
  • Publication date: 2/1/2011
  • Pages: 40
  • Sales rank: 707,037
  • Lexile: AD950L (what's this?)
  • Product dimensions: 9.60 (w) x 10.10 (h) x 0.40 (d)

Meet the Author

Lita Judge
Lita Judge is the author of One Thousand Tracings and Pennies for Elephants and the illustrator of several more books. She lives in Peterborough, New Hampshire.

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  • Posted October 13, 2011

    more from this reviewer

    Highly Recommended

    My Review: This story is about the real life scientist Walter Rothschild and his passion for animals.

    Walter Rothschild was born into a family of bankers and was the richest boy who had no interested in the banking business. Walter barely spoke as he was a very shy 7 years old kid. But he didn't need words to express his love for animals that crawled, slithered or flew. His father wasn't happy that Walter was spending so much of his time with these creatures and he was worried that he wouldn't be able to take over the family business. Walter was interested in becoming a scientist and opening his own museum, a natural history museum.

    Walter was able to stand up to his father and create his own legacy by creating his own museum at the age of 7.

    According to the author, because of Walter Rothschild, the study of wild life has changed over the years. It is no longer considered ethical to take animal specimens. Studying of live animals is done using binoculars and their behavior recorded by cameras.

    Despite what Walter's father wanted him to become Walter stood his ground to become a scientist. Walter created the largest zoological collection ever gathered by one man. We should not let the expectations and pressures of others crush our passion or dreams.

    Author Lita Judge did a great job illustrating this book and capturing the real life history of Walter and his animals.


    FTC Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review. I was not monetarily compensated for my opinion in any way.

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