Editorial Review
SLJ Review of City Critters
Urban-dwelling animal lovers will enjoy this series. With usually only two sentences per page, reading is comfortably paced. Some “crit-ters”—pigeons, squirrels, and rats in some locations—are more ubiquitous in cities than others, e.g., rabbits, raccoons, and foxes.
However, city expansion and population growth have led to increased habitat encroachment by humans, resulting in animal populations once more commonly seen in suburban and rural areas. The animal’s appearance, home, habits, body parts and their advantages, and diet are well-described. High-quality, full-page color photos amplify texts and occasionally include small informational charts.
Appealing covers display title animals against a city backdrop. New vocabulary is boldfaced in black type and defined in the glossary. Back matter in each volume includes a picture glossary, a brief bibliography, a link to the publisher’s website to find more information, and an index.
VERDICT: A serviceable series with very simple, basic information. Recommended for schools and public collections.