Red-Eyed Tree Frog
by Joy Cowley
School Library Journal PreS-Gr 3-In a tropical rain forest in Central America, a red-eyed tree frog spends the night looking for food while avoiding potential predators. Bishop's high-speed photographic techniques transport viewers to this distant world and allow them to see other creatures from the tree frog's perspective. Larger-than-life images document the hunt, brought to a satisfying conclusion as the well-camouflaged frog settles among the leaves to spend the daylight hours in sleep. Cowley's simple text provides a narrative arc for the amazingly sharp, clear photos. Those who want more information can consult the two pages of explanations that follow the story. Accessible to a much younger age group than most books about rain forests, this volume will also attract older readers because of the striking visuals.-Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato
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Book list Ages 2^-5. Stunning color photographs and a gripping interactive text bring you right up close to a red-eyed tree frog in a rain forest in Central America. The big pictures are arranged to tell an exciting narrative, and a few simple words draw you in and build the suspense. As evening comes, the frog wakes up hungry. What will it eat? "Here is an iguana. Frogs do not eat iguanas." Do iguanas eat frogs? A photo shows the two creatures eyeing each other, and the frog does not wait to find out. It does not eat the ant or the katydid. Will it eat the caterpillar? No! the caterpillar is poisonous. Then suddenly, the hunter becomes the prey: a hungry boa snake slips and slithers along a branch. It gets very close. The snake's tongue flickers as it tastes frog in the air. Then, in a climactic double-page spread, the frog jumps and escapes. It finds a moth and crunches it. Finally, the frog shuts its red eyes, as morning comes to the rain forest. The photographs in rich shades of green and red show each creature very close up, even the hairs on the caterpillar, as the small frog would see them. The questions will draw in young preschoolers, who will be held by the pictures and by the exciting story they tell. For older readers, the afterword provides more astonishing facts. --Hazel Rochman
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.