MEET THE MEERKAT, by Darrin Lunde, illustrated by Patricia J. Wynne, Charlesbridge, 2007, available now.
I had a Summer Reading Program assistant one year at my library who loved Meerkats. (Before I met her, I had no idea what a Meerkat was.) During that same summer my granddaughter and I attended a stage production of THE LION KING, which featured -- a cute, though large, meerkat. (Naturally, my summer thank-you gift to her was a stuffed meerkat from the show.)
If you were intrigued by Simba's friend, Timon the Meerkat, and you are a first or second grader, you will love finding out more about this African animal by reading this book.
For example, when asked by the narrator, "what do you look like?" the meerkat pictured says, "I am long and thin. I have a pointy face. I am the size of a squirrel." Who knew? The meerkat on stage with the Lion King cast is the size of a large boy or small man.
The text drew me in with this question and answer format -- telling me exactly what I wanted to know about this animal. The large pictures are inviting. The large typeface encourages young readers. And the information is just enough for a beginning reader's report on this animal.
The author's afterward is not aimed at adults. It is still aimed at the young reader, giving them a little bit more information.
Both the author and the illustrator, a husband and wife team, work for the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.
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-wendieO
