A celebration of animals, Zoobilations! features 20 poems about 21 different animals
Featured animals: weasel, mandrill, centipede/millipede, seagull, rabbit, naked mole rat, dove, hammerhead shark, parrot, llama, horse, bullfrog, crow, giraffe, flying fox, antelope, African elephant, orangutan, midwife toad, starling
Thoughts: Douglas Florian has done it again! Zoobilations! is a collection of poems that feature wordplay and tongue-in-cheek humor and they are paired with colorful illustrations that have tons of kid appeal. I have to wonder if he had a hard time finding animals he hadn't already written poems about given the number of animal themed poetry collections he's published. Some of the poems are suitable for younger kids while others need slightly older readers to get all the humor. I could see myself sharing this whole collection in first and second grade classrooms or just adding a poem to a storytime. For example, "The Bullfrog" would be a great addition to a frog themed storytime while "Mandrill," "Giraffe," and "The African Elephant" could be added to an Africa themed storytime. The possibilities are endless. My favorite poems are "Seagull," "The Parrot," "Horses," "Giraffe," "The Antelope," and "Starling." I've said this before, but I think the main appeal in Douglas Florian's illustrations are that they look like something a child would or could create. I know his preferred medium is gouache watercolor paint, but his illustrations remind me so much of crayon drawings. It's hard to pick a favorite illustration, but I think the seagull and the antelope are my favorites. (Note to self: pair "The Antelope" with "Menu for a Gray Day" from The Popcorn Astronauts and Other Biteable Rhymes by Deborah Ruddell.)
Other Collections by Douglas Florian
Themes: Animals
(Beach Lane Books, 2022.)
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