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Sneed B. Collard III's Most Fun Book Ever about Lizards
Leapin' lizards, sleepin' lizards, and all kinds of other lizards.Lizards are cool. Literally. They are ectotherms, which means they can't make their own heat. That's why you see many types of lizards basking in the sun, seemingly doing nothing at all. That's the life. But make no mistake, lizards have very busy lives-looking for food and avoiding being food.Popular science writer Sneed B. Collard III gets down and dirty with all kinds of lizards-from your average "Joe Lizard," the western fence lizard, to the impressively large Komodo dragon. In a kid-friendly narrative, Sneed explores many different kinds of lizards, their habitats, defense systems, hunting techniques, and mating rituals. He reveals the exciting life of a lizard-from rappelling from the tops of trees to the forest floor, to dropping off a tail to get away from a predator.These stars of the saurian world are ready for their close-ups. Amazing photographs-many taken by Sneed in the field-highlight each tough-as-nails scale, darting tongue, and independently moving eye. Young readers will be fascinated by the amazing world of lizards.
50 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
14 people want to read
About the author
Sneed B. Collard III
97 books37 followersSneed B. Collard III (see also "Sneed B. Collard") is a biologist, world traveler, speaker, and author of almost one hundred books for young people, including the 2024 Orbis Pictus Award winner, Border Crossings (Charlesbridge Publishing). His other recent science titles include Fire Birds; Hopping Ahead of Climate Change; Little Killers; Waiting for a Warbler; Beaver & Otter Get Along . . . Sort of; and the upcoming picture book, Like No Other. Collard holds science degrees from the University of California at Berkeley and U.C. Santa Barbara. He lives in Montana.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 9, 2013
Okay, so this is the first in a stack of informational books. It takes on a very wide topic--all lizards--which the author notes represents over half of all reptiles. So this photograph-oriented book is completely topical, and each 'chapter' (there's a TOC at the front)takes on an aspect of interest for the topic.
Collard provides copious text for each section of the book, in a joking voice that reminds me a little of Kratt's Kreatures from the 1990s on PBS (I guess they have a newer animated show on now). The jokes are frequently designed to anthropomorphize, which is often unacceptable to scientists reviewing children's books--but he clearly emphasizes that it's a joke to do so.
Most doubles in this book have a large captioned photograph to go with the topical text, and an unrelated fact in a small informational sidebar in yellow. The structure works well for National Geographic style reading--i.e., browsing the pictures first. The sidebars offer factual tidbits for a small amount of reading. This book should be very good for research on the topic because of how much text there is.
As an aesthetic experience, I felt like the photos were the strength of the book--I was interested in browsing around several times. The jokes in the text were often cheesy, and I didn't care for them.
For informational text, help me out Stacy, we do not let go of the fact that a picturebook is a piece of art and needs to be at the heart of an art transaction, an aesthetic experience. I'll try over the next few dozen books to focus on this aspect of informational books.
Collard doesn't offer background to convince us of science credentials, only his past books. His writing provides an everyday person's reading of lizards, not a scientist's reading. He has consulted scientists, vets, and others without clear citation, and spends a small section at the end on external sources for further reading. For the most part his treatment is self-referential, and does not do much to guide the reader's look at the topic outside the book.
BTW, Collard used a Spanish phrase that looks like he got it from Google translate. "Do lizards speak Spanish?" cannot be translated word for word as "Haga los lagartos hablan Espanol?" An editor should have checked this! Either 'Hablan los lagartos Espanol' or 'Se hablan los lagartos Espanol' would have been more correct.
Collard provides copious text for each section of the book, in a joking voice that reminds me a little of Kratt's Kreatures from the 1990s on PBS (I guess they have a newer animated show on now). The jokes are frequently designed to anthropomorphize, which is often unacceptable to scientists reviewing children's books--but he clearly emphasizes that it's a joke to do so.
Most doubles in this book have a large captioned photograph to go with the topical text, and an unrelated fact in a small informational sidebar in yellow. The structure works well for National Geographic style reading--i.e., browsing the pictures first. The sidebars offer factual tidbits for a small amount of reading. This book should be very good for research on the topic because of how much text there is.
As an aesthetic experience, I felt like the photos were the strength of the book--I was interested in browsing around several times. The jokes in the text were often cheesy, and I didn't care for them.
For informational text, help me out Stacy, we do not let go of the fact that a picturebook is a piece of art and needs to be at the heart of an art transaction, an aesthetic experience. I'll try over the next few dozen books to focus on this aspect of informational books.
Collard doesn't offer background to convince us of science credentials, only his past books. His writing provides an everyday person's reading of lizards, not a scientist's reading. He has consulted scientists, vets, and others without clear citation, and spends a small section at the end on external sources for further reading. For the most part his treatment is self-referential, and does not do much to guide the reader's look at the topic outside the book.
BTW, Collard used a Spanish phrase that looks like he got it from Google translate. "Do lizards speak Spanish?" cannot be translated word for word as "Haga los lagartos hablan Espanol?" An editor should have checked this! Either 'Hablan los lagartos Espanol' or 'Se hablan los lagartos Espanol' would have been more correct.
August 20, 2016
I have to admit it was the title that caught my eye when I spotted Sneed B. Collard III's Most Fun Book Ever About Lizards by Sneed B. Collard III at our local library. What middle-grade child can resist a title like that?
To say Sneed Collard's book is special is an understatement. First of all, the text is written is a conversational, second person style that is relaxed and friendly. He starts out with "Meet Joe Lizard," detailing the life of "your average" western fence lizard. Sometimes books that use the second person try too hard to be cool, but this one hits just the right note. I was also impressed with the detail and accuracy of the text.
Second, most of the lavish full-color photographs in the book were taken by the author. This allows the text and images to fit perfectly, plus there's less chance that the photographs have been misidentified, a real hazard when using stock photographs. The best part is Sneed Collard is a fantastic photographer.
Third, the author reveals a real passion for his topic, and in fact admits a "special love of reptiles" in the author blurb on the book jacket. This love of reptiles has led him to include a section on lizard conservation and also a realistic look at keeping lizards as pets, which he doesn't encourage for reasons he has obviously thought carefully about.
The bottom line is that Sneed B. Collard III's Most Fun Book Ever About Lizards is a must-have for budding herpetologists, and an interesting and entertaining read for the rest of us. I am definitely going to pick up a copy for our family.
My review at Wrapped in Foil.
To say Sneed Collard's book is special is an understatement. First of all, the text is written is a conversational, second person style that is relaxed and friendly. He starts out with "Meet Joe Lizard," detailing the life of "your average" western fence lizard. Sometimes books that use the second person try too hard to be cool, but this one hits just the right note. I was also impressed with the detail and accuracy of the text.
Second, most of the lavish full-color photographs in the book were taken by the author. This allows the text and images to fit perfectly, plus there's less chance that the photographs have been misidentified, a real hazard when using stock photographs. The best part is Sneed Collard is a fantastic photographer.
Third, the author reveals a real passion for his topic, and in fact admits a "special love of reptiles" in the author blurb on the book jacket. This love of reptiles has led him to include a section on lizard conservation and also a realistic look at keeping lizards as pets, which he doesn't encourage for reasons he has obviously thought carefully about.
The bottom line is that Sneed B. Collard III's Most Fun Book Ever About Lizards is a must-have for budding herpetologists, and an interesting and entertaining read for the rest of us. I am definitely going to pick up a copy for our family.
My review at Wrapped in Foil.
January 25, 2014
I learned a lot in this book about lizards (did you know they are also called saurians?). So many interesting facts that children will love learning about. I thought it was interesting that scientists measure lizards without their tail length (for a few reasons, one being that they often lose their tails). Pictures are amazing. Seeing a komodo dragon (a lizard that can eat people - luckily they only live in Indonesia!) will be fascinating for children (creepy for me!). High quality non-fiction!
June 15, 2018
Types of lizards, facts about lizards, big pictures. Can be text heavy.
Update- Opens by calling a lizard “Joe lizard” to personalize the introduction to lizards. Text heavy but also reads like a story. Humor interspersed : “would I like to have lizards for my parents? ... No!” Or a green anole inflating his dewlap to say “hey baby want to dance?”
Update- Opens by calling a lizard “Joe lizard” to personalize the introduction to lizards. Text heavy but also reads like a story. Humor interspersed : “would I like to have lizards for my parents? ... No!” Or a green anole inflating his dewlap to say “hey baby want to dance?”
February 14, 2012
Entertaining and informative with great photographs.
December 2, 2012
fantastic photographs accompanied by interesting text
May 12, 2013
Fun facts about lizards.
June 19, 2014
Informational text accompanied by captioned photos on every page, glossary, index. Whether it's a pet lizard, or a lizard in the wild, information is here.
March 13, 2016
We looked at the photos and read the captions.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews