CBR15 BINGO: Picture This, because the illustrations are the best part
Last year, when I reviewed Penguins and Other Seabirds, I discovered that Matt Sewell has published other collections of his delightful bird illustrations, and I longed to get my hands on some of them. To my delight, I received The Atlas of Amazing Birds for Christmas last year.
As with Penguins and Other Seabirds, Sewell’s Atlas of Amazing Birds features small snippets–a paragraph or two at most–about each species along with a beautiful watercolor illustration, also by the author. This book is divided by continent, and the selection of birds is completely arbitrary. Imagine, as a bird lover, paring down 10,000 species of birds to 159 of your favorites! The author doesn’t say how he came up with his featured list, but I suspect he went with a combination of birds that are fun to paint like, say, the beautiful painted bunting, whose primary-color plumage graces two pages. . .
and those that are grand and impressive, like the bald eagle, who mates for life and creates enormous nests that can weigh up to two tons.
The selections range from those that most people are at least somewhat familiar with, like owls. . .
to slightly less well-known, like the vibrant turacos of Africa, or the little Madagascan pygmy-kingfisher, who is found only in–you guessed it–Madagascar.
Perhaps Sewell chose species based on their remarkable physical features, like the long-wattled umbrellabird or the bearded bellbird. Maybe he chose some based on their silly names, like Andean cock-of-the-rock or azure tit. And, no doubt, some were selected for their conservation implications, like the California condor and the ivory-billed woodpecker.
While not specifically a children’s book, I highly recommend Atlas of Amazing Birds for children who may be budding ornithologists. The blurbs provide just enough information to kindle your interest in learning more about these incredible winged creatures. Additionally, it’s a beautiful art book for anyone who appreciates watercolor illustrations.
And since the adorable Adélie penguin also makes an appearance, I recommend this book for anyone who could use a smile.