Gr 2–5—The soft, textured illustrations and unflinching narrative reveal how the seasons in the Northern and
Southern Hemispheres impact animals' lives. This informative and engrossing text ends with extensive back matter,
including suggestions on how to aid in conservation efforts.

book made for animal lovers, and those learning about hemispheres/geography ( )

Misinformed, but pretty.

The author leads with a bit of scientific balderdash: "Because of the hemispheres' different angles and distances relative to the sun over the course of a year, their seasons--and their weather patterns--occur at different times." Actually, the earth's orbit is so nearly circular that changes in distance from the sun over the course of the year have no significant effect. Then follows up with some more: "The rhythm of the seasons is being affected by the rapid heating up of our planet, caused by an increase in atmospheric greenhouse gases from human activities such as burning fossil fuels like coal and oil, deforestation, and agriculture and farmiting[sic]." No, again false. The rhythm of the seasons is _caused_ by the fact that the earth's rotational axis is not vertical to its orbital plane and it is _determined_ by its orbit around the sun. Only a _very big_ asteroid or some other entirely unexpected cause is going to change that. Presumably she means the "character" of the seasons.

Ironically, the book concludes in the "Further Reading" section: "You will need to be sure your internet sources are reliable, with accurate facts." and then there are recommendations. You can't make this stuff up!

Some stars for the pretty pictures and overall good design, no stars for the falsehoods and typos in the text.

Responsible parents can always rely on the works of Steve Jenkins which are both beautifully illustrated and correct. ( )

Synergy: Hemispheres and Seasons

Earth is divided into the Northern and Southern Hemisphere by an imaginary line at the equator. The Earth’s tilt causes the seasons. During different months of the year, different part of the Earth receive more or less of the Sun’s direct rays depending on the Earth’s tilted axis.

Read the recently published nonfiction picture book for youth, then learn more at the websites.

NORTH AND SOUTH: A TALE OF TWO HEMISPHERES by Sandra Morris explores how animals have adapted to the seasons in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Combining engaging illustrations with informational text, two-page spreads explore animals from each hemisphere through the months of the year. Mini-maps of animal habitats and information about conservation status is also provided on each page. The end pages provide additional information about each animal.

NASA’s SPACEPLACE provides a page that answers the question “What Causes the Seasons?” In addition to explaining the seasons, it also discusses the hemispheres. The page includes useful illustrations along with links to additional resources.

To visit SpacePlace, go to https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/seasons/en/

THE SEASONS AND HEMISPHERES is a short YouTube video from Happy Learning English exploring both the seasons and the hemispheres.

To watch the video, go to https://youtu.be/qHgs8dcmB4M.

ARC courtesy of Candlewick, an imprint of Random House. ( )