Horn Book

A brown-skinned boy in a red crown shown reading the very book youngsters are holding lets his imagination take him into the narrative as he joins a pachyderm caravan and discovers facts about elephants in expository text. The mixed-media illustrations are both informative and beautifully executed, with varied motifs and an overall design that imparts complicated facts through clear and clean layouts.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

As a young boy in a striped shirt and blue jeans reads his book about elephants, readers learn facts along with him.Delightful art gracefully meanders back and forth between Sendak-ian people and objects and almost photorealistic representations of elephants in their natural habitats. There are quite a few children's books about these magnificent, endangered mammals, and this one is among the best. The accessible text is supplemented by art that drives home such points as the differences between Asian and African elephants and the way an elephant foot's anatomy resembles a woman's (dark-skinned) leg in high heels. Perhaps the best example is the illustration highlighting the amazing reality of an older male bull's 100-pound, 8-foot-long tusk: The book's protagonist and a friend stretch out, foot-to-foot, along the tusk of a benign-appearing elephant, as the text states that the tusk is "the same length as two seven-year-old children toe to toe." And what fun seeing the boy atop the formidable pyramid of fruit that represents a bull elephant's diet of 700 pounds of plant matter a day! The protagonist is dark-skinned, as is his friend, and the appearance of only one white human face is refreshing, as is the matter-of-fact, nonpreachy tone used when discussing saving elephants from extinction. The text covers elephant territory, anatomy, behaviors, and more, ending with comparisons between sleep for elephants and sleep for humans—a perfect ending for a well-executed book. A must-have for anyone who loves elephants. (author's note) (Informational picture book. 6-10)

School Library Journal Starred Review (Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 CDT 2018)

K-Gr 3 Text and striking watercolor drawings combine to use both fact and fantasy to convey information about a beloved and endangered animal. The nicely rounded story begins with a crown-wearing boy, lying on a rug in a cozy, elephant-themed room, reading this very book. On three subsequent spreads a map shows where elephants can be found, labeled images compare African and Asian elephants, and a pile of cars creates a striking visualization of their potential size. In the final image, the young child has fallen asleep, still on the rug. Facts about family bonds, physical characteristics, behavior, food and feeding, nurturing, and typical activities are relayed in a smoothly written text of short paragraphs. Comparisons familiar to children abound. Threats to elephants are described in an opening author's note. Desmond thanks expert advisers, but provides no suggestions for further learning. The boy's stuffed animals call to mind previous titles in the author-illustrator's series about iconic endangered animals, The Blue Whale and The Polar Bear . VERDICT This appealing and informative introduction to elephants would make a lovely addition to animal collections. Kathleen Isaacs, Children's Literature Specialist, Pasadena, MD

Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews

As a young boy in a striped shirt and blue jeans reads his book about elephants, readers learn facts along with him.Delightful art gracefully meanders back and forth between Sendak-ian people and objects and almost photorealistic representations of elephants in their natural habitats. There are quite a few children's books about these magnificent, endangered mammals, and this one is among the best. The accessible text is supplemented by art that drives home such points as the differences between Asian and African elephants and the way an elephant foot's anatomy resembles a woman's (dark-skinned) leg in high heels. Perhaps the best example is the illustration highlighting the amazing reality of an older male bull's 100-pound, 8-foot-long tusk: The book's protagonist and a friend stretch out, foot-to-foot, along the tusk of a benign-appearing elephant, as the text states that the tusk is "the same length as two seven-year-old children toe to toe." And what fun seeing the boy atop the formidable pyramid of fruit that represents a bull elephant's diet of 700 pounds of plant matter a day! The protagonist is dark-skinned, as is his friend, and the appearance of only one white human face is refreshing, as is the matter-of-fact, nonpreachy tone used when discussing saving elephants from extinction. The text covers elephant territory, anatomy, behaviors, and more, ending with comparisons between sleep for elephants and sleep for humans—a perfect ending for a well-executed book. A must-have for anyone who loves elephants. (author's note) (Informational picture book. 6-10)

Starred Review ALA Booklist (Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 CDT 2018)

Starred Review The caring nature, intelligence, and incredible size of elephants shine through in Desmond's magnificent presentation of these mammals. She invites readers into her book by way of a young, smiling boy who is wearing a red paper crown and enthusiastically reading the very same elephant book. Those pages become our pages, and a description of the two elephant species living today (African and Asian), both their ranges and side-by-side physical comparisons, fill the next two double-page spreads. Desmond's illustrations are showstoppers, using watercolor, acrylic, pencil, crayons, and a drypoint printmaking technique. A muted palette of browns, grays, musty greens, and cream characterizes the elephants' habitat, but the boy's world pops with primary colors, including familiar objects inserted into scenes for scale. In one spread, a wrinkled, hairy trunk gently picks up a small red berry, and its textures are so well rendered that readers will want to reach out to touch the elephant's rough skin. Also included are general characteristics ch as foot structure, tusk length ("two seven-year-old children [lying] toe to toe"), and excellent hearing d habits, like cooling down in mud, living in matriarchal family groups, and mourning their dead. Desmond's writing is precise and inviting, calling attention to the elephant's role as a keystone species and humans' roles in elephants' diminishing numbers. A memorable introduction to a living wonder.

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

In Desmond-s third title in a series devoted to endangered animals, a brown-skinned boy wearing a red crown reads from a book-the very same book in readers- hands-about African and Asian elephants. The mixed-media art offers naturalistic depictions of elephants on the savannah, tramping through the forest, and crossing a dry desert. Desmond includes expressive touches, as well: a mountain of fruits and vegetables represents what an elephant could eat in a day (the boy sits atop the pile, munching on an apple). Memorable facts about elephants occur throughout: -Since some African elephants- ears are as big as full-sized refrigerators, vigorous flapping can generate quite a breeze.- An affectionate and informative celebration of two magnificent species. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)