Is This a Tiger?

The second book in a series focused on finding endangered animals … or not?

Today, Alex is going to help her friend Atticus spot a real tiger in the wild. Atticus has never seen a tiger before, but Alex knows everything about tigers. She’s even made her own field guide about them, which she uses to explain to Atticus what to look for: stripes, big teeth, nocturnal! But each new fact only leads Atticus to a different (and wrong) animal! When he hopefully asks, “Is this a tiger?” he’s disappointed to discover that, though it meets the criteria, it’s not! Will these two intrepid explorers ever manage to find a tiger?

This clever picture book series from author and illustrator Elina Ellis provides child-friendly introductions to animal identification, while also serving as a subtle reminder about the disappearance of endangered animals. In each story, Alex shares her knowledge of an endangered animal, while the characters struggle to find one in the wild. With this story, young children will love outsmarting Atticus as they shout “No!” every time he asks if he’s found an elusive tiger. Spreads from Alex’s field guide are loaded with tiger facts. Further information about tigers and the other animals that appear in the book are also included. This book promotes critical thinking and age-appropriate conversations about perspective and drawing premature conclusions. It offers excellent tie-ins to life science lessons on the characteristics and diversity of living things.

Elina Ellis was born in Ukraine and has a master's in children's book illustration from Anglia Ruskin University. She has illustrated several picture books, including Chickadee: Criminal Mastermind and This Is the Path the Wolf Took. Elina loves wildlife, cooking and a good joke. There is no greater reward for her than a smile on the face of her reader. She lives in Cambridge, United Kingdom.