Touch and Feel Canadian Animals

Submitted by TBoudreau on
Toronto, ON: Scholastic Canada, 2017
12 pp., board book, $9.99
Grades
Preschool
Ages
Birth-age 3
Review by
Courtney Crocker
Excerpt

Beaver. Boreal Chorus Frog. Otter. Arctic Hare.

What’s more exciting than Canadian animals? This board book covers various Canadian animals, such as a beaver, frog, otter, moose and puffin as well as other animals commonly found across the country. The different textures help bring a tactile element for early readers. Young readers can feel fluffy fur of the Arctic hare or the rigid back of the boreal chorus frog.

The illustrations in this book are the focal point. The white background helps to make the animals stand out. The very real images of these animals are paired with digital creations to bring these images to life. For example, the image of the Boreal Chorus Frog, with its rough 3D back, shows it sitting on a lily pad with a whimsical digital image of a leaf and ladybug. The page with the fluffy Arctic hare is similar with the photograph image of the hare accompanied by a playful sun and snow.

This book is perfect for youngsters. It’s a quick read for short attention spans, but, more than that, Touch and Feel Canadian Animals is a conversation starter. Those reading the board book can easily discuss a variety of topics with little ones, such as where animals live and what they eat.

Highly Recommended
Reviewer

Courtney Crocker is the Regional Librarian for Central Division with Newfoundland and Labrador Public Libraries. She lives in Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador.