Forest Explorer: A Life-sized Field Guide - Hardcover

Bishop, Nic

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0439174805 ISBN 13: 9780439174800

Publisher: Scholastic Press, 2004

Synopsis

A dramatic, life-size photographic field guide to the wonders of the forest and the miniature wildlife that thrives there.

Explore the exciting world of the forest, where more than 125 different bugs, worms, and small critters play out the drama of life in miniature. Seven different life-size forest habitats, exploring the leaf-litter to the tree-top canopy through all four seasons, are vividly depicted in enticingly lush photographic scenes. Each scene is followed by "field notes" which identify all animals, relate intriguing facts about survival in each habitat, and share the excitement of discovery. Includes forest exploration hints, essential safety information, and a "picture index" for easy reference.

About this title

About the Author

Growing up in New Zealand, writer and photographer Nic Bishop was surrounded by science. His father is a biology teacher and a science writer and his mother worked as a scientist. Today, Bishop has written and photographed for more than 20 children's books, and his science background has served as a basis for his extensive writing and photographic documentation of nature. Bishop doesn't try to make science interesting ; he knows it's already interesting, and just lets readers at it. Nic Bishop and his wife live in Michigan, where he raises the insects, arachnids, and animals he photographs. For more information about Nic Bishop, visit: scholastic.com/tradebooks

Reviews

Kindergarten-Grade 4--With this beautiful and engrossing photographic guide, Bishop creates another exciting study of natural history that will make children sit up, take notice, and wonder. Focusing on deciduous forests, the book consists of brief chapters that showcase life in the understory, the treetops, and at the edge of the woods. Other sections cover "Waking in Spring," nocturnal creatures, "The Fall," and "Winter Survivors." Each chapter opens with a stunning photographic spread that is crammed with pictures of animals, plants, and insects--all life-sized except when they are highlighted by a magnifying glass. Each scene is followed by a two-page description of the denizens of that location. Only a snippet of information about each animal is provided. A list of hints for forest exploration, a segment that points out things to observe in a tri-monthly rotation, and a wonderful picture index are appended. Though not useful for fieldwork or research, this title's eye-catching visuals and oversized format are great for firing enthusiasm and encouraging browsing. Extend the reading experience with Jim Arnosky's "Crinkleroot" series (S & S) and "All About" series (Scholastic), and Robert Sabuda's "The Young Naturalist's Pop-Up Handbooks" (Hyperion).--Dona Ratterree, New York City Public Schools
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gr. 3-6. As with the author's previous nature close-ups, this forest tour is designed to sharpen viewers' powers of observation as well as provide help in identifying many kinds of common insects and other small creatures. Bishop offers unlabeled, full-bleed photo collages teeming with life, followed by spreads of visually keyed captions. Assembled from approximately 60 digitally combined and corrected photographs, each of the seven close-up tableaux highlights one level of a deciduous North American woodland in a different season. Unaccountably, Bishop tones down his accompanying notes, so that, for instance, tree damage from gypsy moth caterpillars "doesn't happen very often," and all the wasps he mentions lay eggs "near" rather than on or in chosen prey. But he does a good job of introducing a number of insects, birds, and mammals that children are apt to see during a walk in the woods, appends suggestions for developing a nature journal, and provides a quick-reference visual index. Both budding naturalists and fans of Walter Wick's I Spy series will linger over this spectacular woodland foray. John Peters
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Scholastic Press
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0439174805
• ISBN 13: 9780439174800
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 48