Stripes of All Types

by Susan Stockdale

Overview

A patterned parade of striped animals leaps to life!
What kinds of animals have stripes, and why do they have them? To scare predators, hide more easily, or warn enemies to stay away? Award-winning author-illustrator Susan Stockdale explores nineteen striped animals from around the world, each depicted in their native habitats. Her bright, detailed paintings help show the many reasons stripes are found in nature. Back matter tells a little bit more about each animal, and readers can test their knowledge of animal stripes with a fun matching game at the end.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781561456956
Publisher:	Holiday House
Publication date:	04/02/2013
Series:	About Habitats Series
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	9.40(w) x 10.60(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Susan Stockdale began her art career as a textile designer for the apparel industry, providing her an opportunity to express her love of pattern and color. Today, pattern and color remain central to her work as the author and illustrator of critically acclaimed picture books that celebrate nature. Her books have won a variety of awards including the ALSC Notable Children's Book, NCTE Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts, NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K–12, and the Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books of the Year. Susan lives in Maryland with her husband and is a popular speaker at schools and conferences.

Editorial Reviews

Stockdale pairs precise acrylic illustrations with equally tidy verse to depict 19 striped animals. “Stripes found in water,/ sliding through weeds./ Drinking from rivers,/ and darting through reeds,” she writes, as the accompanying images show purple-striped jellyfish, an eastern garter snake, ring-tailed lemurs, and an American bittern. Elsewhere, a horizontally striped surgeonfish is seen “scouting a reef” amid speckled coral, and a poison frog in shocking orange, yellow, and red stripes is “propped on a log.” Closer to home, two children cuddle with striped cats. Appended pages discuss the ways stripes benefit each creature and also provide a guessing game for readers to match stripes with their respective animals. Ages 2–6. Agent: Gina Maccoby, Gina Maccoby Literary Agency. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"Stockdale pairs precise acrylic illustrations with equally tidy verse to depict 19 striped animals. . . Appended pages discuss the ways stripes benefit each creature and also provide a guessing game for readers to match stripes with their respective animals."—Publishers Weekly

"A lovely, interactive exploration of stripes and a good introduction to some new animals."—Kirkus Reviews

"This engaging introduction to patterns in nature is a visual delight."—School Library Journal

From the Publisher

PreS-Gr 2—Striped animals from around the world are featured in this informational picture book. The lyrical, rhyming text briefly describes each creature in action in its habitat: "Prowling the prairie,/perched on a peak./Crawling on cactus,/and camped by a creek." Stockdale's corresponding acrylic illustrations show a North American badger stalking through tall grass; an African bongo in the moonlight; cactus bees collecting nectar, and a baby Malayan tapir shaded by palm trees. A clearly written glossary serves as an identification guide, from the exotic purple-striped jellyfish ("Stripes found in water") to the familiar tabby cat ("Stripes found with children, curled in their arms"), and explains how each animal benefits from having stripes. A matching game encourages close observation. This engaging introduction to patterns in nature is a visual delight.—Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada

School Library Journal

Stockdale's feast for the eyes explores the stripes found in the animal world. In rhyming verse often separated by page turns, the author presents readers with the many places stripes can be found: "Propped on a log, / poised on a leaf. // Scaling a ridge, // and scouting a reef." On each page is a cleanly rendered portrayal of a striped animal found in that habitat: a frog, a butterfly, a skunk and some tropical fish. Sharp lines and beautiful patterns are what readers will notice about Stockdale's acrylic artwork. The animals are not named within the text, allowing this to be a great guessing game, though the youngest ones may not sit still long enough to learn about the animals in the backmatter. And while the creatures are a nifty mix of the common and less well-known--zebra, skunk, bees, tapir, okapi, bongo--most readers can simply name the type of animal and be satisfied; they need not know the specific names of the tropical fish, though they are provided. The final two spreads present readers with thumbnails of the animals and a few sentences of information about each, as well as a challenge: Match the 19 different stripe patterns to their animals from the text (answers are provided). A lovely, interactive exploration of stripes and a good introduction to some new animals. (Informational picture book. 2-6)

Kirkus Reviews