A Wombat's World
A baby wombat is born deep in an underground burrow. After seven months in his mother's pouch he is ready to explore. As evening falls, the mother and baby wombat come out of their burrow. Using their sharp claws, they spend the night digging up grasses and roots to eat. Soon the young wombat will be big enough to live on his own. Dig into this book and learn about a wombat's world.
Follow a young wombat as he grows up in Australia. A readable and lively text provides a close-up look at these stout marsupials. Cut paper illustrations by the author help tell the tales of these amazing animals and the world in which they live.This picture book follows a baby wombat from birth in the forests and grasslands of Australia through the first year of its life. It shows wombats in their natural home along with other animals that share their environment. This book can be read aloud to younger children or an older child can read it alone.
Sidebars on each page spread expand information in the text. Back matter includes a map of where wombats live, fun facts, a glossary and index, and a guide to websites appropriate for the age group.
Look in your library for more information about wombats in Caroline Arnold's book, Australian Animals, (Harper Collins, 2000).
To purchase a fine art print or card of one of the illustrations from A Wombat's World, go to www.etsy.com/shop/CarolineArnoldArt.
For a preview of the book, click here .
This introduction to wombats combines a narrative story with boxed facts about the animals. As in other titles in the Caroline Arnold's Animals series, this introduction to wombats combines a narrative story with boxed facts about the animals. The uncluttered cut-paper collages and simple, straightforward text show and tell events in a wombat's life over a year's time, as she builds a burrow, mates, gives birth, and raises her young to independence. Very young children may need further explanation for a few references in the abbreviated text, such as how, exactly, marsupials nurse their young, but veteran-author Arnold gives a mostly clear, compelling sense of the lives and characteristics of these unique animals. A map, a few "fun facts," and further reading close this picture-book title, which is sure to please young animal lovers.
Review of A Platypus' World and A Wombat's World by Caroline Arnold: Each of these books describes one Australian mammal. Arnold opens with a brief entry stating where the mammal lives and its habitat, food, length, weight, animal class, and scientific name. Her narrative of a female's life from birthing preparations through raising the young cleverly contrasts with distinctly hued boxes of fast facts, such as the length of a platypus's burrow or size of a newborn wombat. Along the way, readers will also learn to identify other species in the biome, via captioned images. In both titles, the cut-paper illustrations in scenic spreads feature a night-time palette of indigo, olive, mocha, and burnt sienna. Back matter includes a map of the habitat, six fun facts, and instructions for accessing FactHound's site to research related topics. Visually engaging and brimming with data, these books are perfect for reports on these animals or the Australian continent. Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA