These informative new books in the Wild Animal Kingdom series give a good overview of basic facts about several fairly exotic animals. Each book follows the same general pattern. First, it tells the story of "A Day in the Life" of its animal. It continues with the animal's diet and habitat in the section "Food to Eat and a Place to Live." "Family Life" then covers reproduction and the animal's life as an individual or in a group. The final section, "Predators and Other Threats," identifies the creature's place in the food chain as well as the threats it faces from humans, often from hunting or habitat loss, and conservation efforts. Appropriate photos, sometimes accompanied by fact-filled captions, add interest to the text. Maps and diagrams, including a food chain, a size chart, and a "By the Numbers" spread in each book, provide additional information. Readers of Bats will learn that a brown bat's heart beats 1,000 times per minute when the creature is in flight. Young readers will appreciate the varied animal facts these books offer.

Beginning with "A Day in the Life," each of these hi-lo books briefly describes the featured animal's physical characteristics, diet, habitat, behaviors, reproduction, development, and predators, then touches upon threats to survival and humans' conservation attempts. Large stock photographs, diagrams, charts, and sidebars supplement each simple text, making for an eye-catching if busy presentation. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind.