birds & animals

We are days away from 2013 coming a close. How about popping down to your local library and checking out some new non fiction on animals just in time for 2014?

The Animal Book.

This is a must have book for all animal lovers, budding scientists, teachers and librarians. Contains information and shares facts on over three hundred  fastest, fiercest, toughest, cleverest, shyest and most surprising animals and offers a brief overview of the history of life on Earth. Prepare to dance with a blue footed booby, hum along with a humpback whale or travel to the Galapagos with Charles Darwin and learn some fascinating facts along the way like the horned lizard squirts blood from its eyes and the cricket hears with ears on its legs.

 
Whales and Dolphins.

This book serves as a perfect start to a journey of exploring whales and dolphins. Read this and find out all you can about these amazing mammals, for example which is the largest animal on Earth, the mammal with the longest migration, and dolphins singing and calling to each other. This book is  designed to appeal to children aged 6 to 8 years old.

Also check out my previous post on Amazing Sea Mammals.

 
If you were a Snake.

This is probably the sort of  book Lord Voldemort was reading when he was in training talking to snakes. Not surprising as it takes you through everything you need to know about the psychology of snakes –  how they think, how they sense the world and how they communicate. You will also read and find out which snakes are the most venomous, places where you are most likely to find snakes and what it is really like for snakes to shed their skin. Finally (and most importantly) you get insight on how snakes think, feel and experience the world.

Also check out other titles: If you were a Cat and If you were a dog.

 
Weird Animals.

Do you want to see and read all about the weird and wonderful animals known to man? Well, this is the book  for you! Discover some of the strangest animals on earth through jaw-dropping facts and dramatic photos. You will learn why the duck-billed platypus is so unusual,  you will discover which primate has a seriously strange nose and find out what makes the giraffe  weevil so odd.

Jimmy the Joey: The true story of an amazing koala rescue.

I absolutely loved this book! Read all about the true story of Jimmy, an endangered baby koala joey who is rescued and cared for at Koala Hospital and raised by a new ‘family’ (in the form of the team at Koala Hospital) and a new ‘Mummy’ (in the form of a hospital volunteer named Barb.) This is a beautiful heartwarming story that comes complete with lots of adorable photographs from when he was first rescued to when he was released in a protected forest area for Australian wildlife. There are especially cute photographs of Jimmy in his laundry basket, cuddling  his adopted ‘mum’ and trying to ride her leg! So brace yourself for cute overload! A delightful addition to our libraries and a treat for adults and children during the summer holidays. You might also enjoy reading A little book of sloth.

DID YOU KNOW: Koalas aren’t bears, but a rather a mammal called a marsupial, like kangaroos, wombats and opossums and a mother koala carries her baby in a pouch on her body.

 
Vicks: The Polar Bear Cub.

Brace yourself for even more cuteness! Check out this amazing book on Vicks the polar cub, who was born in the Rotterdam Zoo on December 6th 2010 and who became a celebrity as 500,000 people watch him during the first several months of his life on a webcam feed from his maternity den until he made his first public appearance in March 2011 and captured the hearts of millions of people around the world. Overall I enjoyed this book. Absolutely loved the photographs, especially the photography of a newly born Vicks cuddling up with his Mummy. The illustrations were cute and complemented the photos and events taking place in Vick’s life well. Another  delightful addition to our libraries and a treat for adults and children during the school holidays.

DID YOU KNOW: Male polar bears pee down, while female polar bears pee straight behind them.

Gone to the dogs…

Owing a puppy or a dog can be great fun. However it is important that you know how to look after them properly. Luckily for you, Wellington City Libraries has a new book in the Junior Non Fiction called Puppy by Jinny Johnson, which goes into full detail of what a puppy eats, drinks, what toys it likes to play with and what you need to do to make sure your puppy is comfortable. This is a great book to read, especially good for young children and for families who are interested in acquring a puppy for a pet. If you’re unsure what breed of dog is suitable for your family, you can also check these books on dog breeds also by Jinny Johnson: Labrador Retriever and German Shepherd. These books are great to read because it tells about the dog breed’s main characteristics,  how to train them, how they grow and shows them in action.

Hope you all have a Happy New Year and enjoy the rest of your summer.