"Most people know about lions, zebras, monkeys and bears, but what about bettongs and bilbies? Or potoroos and pademelons? Dibblers and dunnarts? These animals live on the continent of Australia, along with kangaroos, koalas, wombats, and a whole crowd of amazing creatures."
And, they are all marsupials...which you likely know means that the mothers raise their babies inside a furry pouch on her belly. If you thought you knew a lot about the marsupials of the world, read on and discover just how much you did not know about them. I am astounded!
Each page of text faces an accompanying and astounding photograph of one such creature. The captions inform and describe some of the interesting characteristics of the animal in question. As well as that, each page has a sentence that is printed in bolded, colored font for attention, and further data follows to add to our store of new knowledge. Some may be familiar, but much is not (at least, for me!)
Toward the center of the book you will find a trademark Nic Bishop photograph, a double-page foldout of the most incredible kind. This one shows a possum gliding from tree to tree in a series of action shots, that must have taken hours of patience to finally capture. Nic Bishop says he spent six months in Australia, often in unbearable heat and always amazed at the marsupials' ability to survive and thrive. His notes at the end of the book are personal and filled with memories of his time spent in the wild. An index and a glossary help with our need to go back for more, and to understand unfamiliar terms.
If you have not had the great good luck to see other books by Nic Bishop, let this be your introduction to him. Stop at the library or your favorite book store and ask if you might see Spiders, Frogs or Moths and Butterflies. You will be amazed, and in awe of his talent.
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