What's Smaller Than a Pygmy Shrew? by Robert E. Wells, Christy Grant (Editor)

From the Publisher

A pygmy shrew is small; it's among the smallest of mammals. What could be smaller? Well, a ladybug--a pygmy shrew would look like a mammoth to a ladybug's eyes. But then, that same ladybug would look gigantic next to protozoa.Robert E. Wells, author of Is a Blue Whale the Biggest Thing There Is? now invites you to explore the large world of the very small.

Children's Literature

The book begins by comparing the size of a pygmy shrew to a toadstool, an elephant and a ladybug. The composition of smaller and smaller particles is explored. Illustrations of paramecia, bacteria, molecules, atoms, electrons, protons, neutrons and quarks are included along with the explanation that in order to view these a special microscope is needed. A small glossary is also included. The magnified illustrations help to clarify the vocabulary.

School Library Journal

Gr 3-4In this presentation that goes from small to infinitesimal, Wells compares the size of a tiny animal (a pygmy shrew) to an insect (a ladybug), which is in turn contrasted with one-celled animals, bacteria, molecules, atoms, and sub-atomic particles. Bright, colorful cartoons and a text that looks like hand lettering in a variety of fonts are jauntily arranged across the pages. Readers are encouraged to try to imagine being the sizes of the creatures under discussion. This lighthearted treatment is fine for the familiar, but begins to become confusing for a paramecium, an amoeba, and bacteria. Viruses are skipped as the narrative continues to include molecules, atoms, quarks, and electrons of the physical sciences instead of a parallel journey through diminishing sizes in the animal world to perhaps ovum, sperm, and DNA. The book has the look of an introduction for young readers. As the narrative continues, however, many terms are introduced, without pronunciation guides even in the two-page glossary, and the cartoon approach becomes cluttered and less effective.Frances E. Millhouser, Reston Regional Library, VA

BookList

In "Is a Blue Whale the Biggest Thing There Is?" (1993), Wells used words and pictures to give young children an inkling of how big things can be. In his latest book, he reverses the concept to introduce smallness. A pygmy shrew looks small beside an elephant, but not when it's next to a ladybug. In turn, the ladybug looks enormous compared to a paramecium. Showing that even a single cell is not the smallest thing, Wells introduces molecules, atoms, electrons, and quarks. The acrylic-and-ink artwork includes touches of humor. Despite the inherent problems in illustrating what cannot be observed, Wells introduces a challenging concept in a way that will entertain and intrigue young children.

Product Details