Animals in Surprising Shades: Poems about Earth's Colorful Creatures

A 2024 CBC Teachers Favorite Award Winner

A Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books of the Year selection (2024)

Named a 2024 Outstanding Science Trade Book by the NSTA/CBC

For young poets who love science and young scientists who love poetry, this thoughtful collection of poems about fascinating and colorful creatures found throughout the world invites readers to linger and wonder on every page.

Learn why the Blue-footed Booby puts on a special dance or how the Picasso Bug uses its masterful chemical defense against predators. Explore simple and fun poetic forms like the tanka, haiku, and quatrain. Just be sure to take good notes! An interactive component rewards practicing poets seeking to challenge themselves further.

With gorgeous illustrations and a rainbow of colors to complement the lyrical and engaging text, this book will fit nicely on the shelves of any classroom or library where kids are interested in science, writing or the arts.