Review: Amazing Snakes! (an I Can Read book)

Amazing Snakes! by Sara L. Thompson, photographs by the Wildlife Conservation Society (HarperCollins, 2006).

Big snakes and little snakes. Snakes that jump from trees and snakes that slither on the ground. Green snakes, black snakes, striped and spotted snakes. Poisonous snakes and harmless snakes. Snakes that eat mice or fish, snakes that eat birds or bats, and even snakes that eat crocodiles. If you like snakes, this is the book for you!

Sarah L. Thomson uses simple language, short sentences, and pronunciation guides within the text to create an engaging book on the lives of snakes. Emerging readers ready for Level 2 “I Can Read” books should have little trouble making their way through the text, and the brilliant photographs will help hold a reader’s attention. In brief passages, page by page, Thomson describes different kinds of snakes around the world, their methods of catching and eating their prey, their use of camoflauge, and their life cycles. At the end, Thomson describes how snakes are a necessary part of the environment and why it pays to protect snakes. She also discusses how scientists study snakes.

Written for the emerging reader, the book would also be an excellent choice for a reluctant reader who has an interest in creepy creatures.