Non-fiction - Review #1 - Steve Jenkins

Jenkins, Steve. 2007. Living Color. New York: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0618708979

Accuracy -

Steve Jenkins is a well-respected author of over 20 books. He has a reputation for accuracy and "stunning, eyepopping, inventive, gorgeous, masterful, extraordinary, playful, irresistible, compelling, engaging, accessible, glorious, and informative" books.

Steve Jenkins. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/catalog/authordetail.cfm?authorID=1643

Organization -

This book about how animals use color is organized around colors. The first page is an introduction with successive pages belonging to one color at a time. Examples are given for red, blue, yellow, green, orange, purple, and pink. Each two-page spread shows various animals and tells why and how each animal uses the color. Following the "color" pages is a more detailed explanation of other facets, such as if animals see color and how color is created. Towards the end of the book, Jenkins includes statistics about each animal, again by color, including length, habitat, diet, and an additional high-interest fact or two. He also includes titles of other books to read to learn more on the subject of animals and their colors.

Design -

The design of Living Color is eye-catching. Each page has a white background with bold, cut-paper collages of each animal. The message the animal is sending through color is summarized by one sentence, in the correct color, and further detailed in black text. For instance, on the red page, by the picture of the scarlet percher dragonfly it reads, "I'm all grown up. The male scarlet percher dragonfly changes from yellow-green to bright red when it is fully grown. Female dragonflies are attracted to its brilliant color."

Two animals with multiple colors, the cuttle fish and the chameleon, wrap around the page from one color to the next and further explanation continues. The cuttle fish is on the yellow and green pages. The chameleon is on the green and orange pages.

There are about 6 animals per two-page spread. This is visually appealing without being cluttered.

Style -

Steve Jenkins has a very clear writing style. He explains about the animals and their use of color in understandable terms. He also uses fun and familiar adjectives, like nasty, tasty, and lumpy, to describe the animals. This adds an element of whimsy to the text. From the variety of animals included, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish, and insects, it is clear the author finds the subject fascinating. In the book, he raises some questions that do not have clear answers, such as why robin's eggs are blue.

Review Excerpts -

Kirkus Reviews - "Color by color, gorgeous collages against clean white backgrounds are accompanied by playful typography and cool factoids (did you know that sloths enjoy a greenish hue lent by algae growing in their fur?). Jenkins's design, always striking, reaches the heights of inspiration with this offering, as when the color-changing cuttlefish appears half on the yellow page and continues through the turn onto the green page, a sly trick repeated with the chameleon. It's a smorgasbord approach that does not seek to make connections beyond color, but rather to astonish the reader with the range of colors and adaptations found in the natural world.

Booklist - "From the pink fairy armadillo to the purple deep-sea dragonfish, readers will be fascinated by the panoply of critters that often seem the stuff of fairy lore, and educators will applaud the clever concept of presenting survival adaptations as a biological fashion show."

Publishers Weekly - "Jenkins once again astounds...the combination of easy-to-understand language and gorgeous illustrations makes this a prime choice for any young animal enthusiast's collection."

Connections -

* For younger readers, make a rainbow book. Choose one animal per color, tell how that animal uses color and illustrate a picture to go with the writing.

* This could be presented as reader's theater. Each student chooses an animal and writes a script from the animal's point of view to relay information about how the animal uses color. Organize the presentation by color.

* After reading the book, extrapolate the main reasons animals use color. Sort the animals by these reasons.

* Read other books by Steve Jenkins.

• Actual Size ISBN-13: 9780618375943
• Sisters & Brothers: Sibling Relationships in the Animal World ISBN-13: 9780618375967
• What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? ISBN-13: 9780618256280

* Read the books recommended by Steve Jenkins in the book, Living Color.

• Animals and Their Colors: Camouflage, Warning Coloration, Courtship and Territorial Display, Mimicry. by Michael and Patricia Fogdon. ISBN-13: 9780517514894
• Animal Dazzlers: The Role of Brilliant Colors in Nature by Sneed B. Collard III. ISBN-13: 9780613183703
• Dramatic Displays by Tim Knight. ISBN-13: 9781403432551
• Red Eyes or Blue Feathers: A Book About Animal Colors by Patrician M. Stockland. Illustrated by Todd Ouren. ISBN-13: 9781404809314