HOME SCHOOL BOOK REVIEW
Book: Animal Babies
Author: Dandi Daley Mackall
Illustrator: Jill Newton
Publisher: Augsburg Fortress Publishers, republished in 2003
ISBN-13: 978-1569873366 (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1569873364 (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 978-0806643854 (Board book)
ISBN-10: 0806643854 (Board book)
Related website: www.dandibooks.com (author)
Language level: 1
(1=nothing objectionable; 2=common euphemisms and/or childish slang terms; 3=some cursing or profanity; 4=a lot of cursing or profanity; 5=obscenity and/or vulgarity)
Reading level: Ages 2 and up
Rating: 5 stars (EXCELLENT)
Reviewed by Wayne S. Walker
Disclosure: Any books donated for review purposes are in turn donated to a library. No other compensation has been received for the reviews posted on Home School Book Review.
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Mackall, Dandi Daley. Animal Babies (published in 1995 by Landoll’s Inc., Ashland, OH). This is one of the books which I remember that both of our boys just loved when they were little. As part of their homeschooling, even their “preschooling” at home, we liked to introduce scientific concepts, such as animals, plants, astronomy, etc., by using “real books” such as this one about “Kittens, cats, baby bats. Flapping, slapping, playful pats…,” which uses delightful rhyme and images to explores animal families that live and play and love, just like ours, while teaching toddlers about imagination and faith. Plus, there’s a touch-and-feel surprise on the final page that reinforces learning and encourages repeated readings. It is now one of the Imagination Series from Augsburg Fortress of early-concept board books on numbers, colors, shapes, and families.
Each book features vibrant full-color illustrations, easy rhyming text, and a touch-and-feel surprise on final page. If I recall correctly, our hardback edition of Animal Babies from Landoll’s identified the author only as “Dandi,” but we learned that she is really the award-winning Dandi Daley Mackall, who has written more than 400 books for children and lives in rural Ohio, with her husband, three children, two horses, a dog, and a cat. One of her more recent books, The Silence of Murder, is the winner of the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery 2012. She also received the 2009 Helen Keating Ott Award for distinguished contribution toward promoting high moral and ethical values in children and young adult literature. Jill Newton is an illustrator living in England, whose illustrations have been well received worldwide.
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