A Review of Actual Size

By Steve Jenkins

* Note: This blog fulfills a course requirement at TWU.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Jenkins, Steve. Actual Size. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company 2004. ISBN: 0547512910

PLOT SUMMARY

Actual Size is a fun fact-filled book that features illustrations by the author of the actual size of insects, animals, and fish. This allows the reader to compare their hand to the hand of a gorilla, or see the actual size of a giant squid’s eye, or look in amazement at the two-foot long tongue of the giant anteater. The illustrations of the creatures are made from colorful cut-paper collages. Of course, some of the creatures are too big for the page, so only parts of the creature are featured, but others, like the Goliath bird-eater tarantula is featured in its entirety. Interesting facts about the creatures are included on each page, such as “the Alaskan brown bear is the largest meat-eating animal that lives on land [at] 13 feet [and] 1,700 pounds.” This is a rather large book and some pages fold out to encompass the larger-sized animals, such as the saltwater crocodile. Each page introduces one or two species from the smallest fish, the dwarf goby at ½ inch, to the largest bird, an ostrich at 9 feet tall and 340 pounds. At the end of the book, the 18 creatures featured are illustrated on a smaller scale with interesting facts about how the species survives.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This is an excellent book for comparison of the sizes of creatures on our own self, as well as an introduction to many different species that share our planet. I read this book to a 3 year-old and she was enthralled by the pictures, counted the toes on the elephant’s foot, and let out a growl at the sight of the Siberian tiger. The inquisitive nature of a child is sated by an array of colorful creatures brought to life in wonderful artwork by the author. Similar to many of Jenkins' other books, Actual Size is a great teaching tool and a fun read.

REVIEW EXCERPTS

Amazon - Jenkins' collages capture the texture and color of these cut-out creatures, and the thoughtful inclusion of an illustrated index shows each animal in its scaled-down entirety, accompanied by longer, fact-filled descriptions. While younger kids might not appreciate the subtlety of the book's clever "actual-size" trope, readers young and old will love all the close-up views and learn a few things along the way. (Ages 4 to 8)

School Library Journal - The end matter offers full pictures of the creatures and more details about their habitats and habits. Mixing deceptive simplicity with absolute clarity, this beautiful book is an enticing way to introduce children to the glorious diversity of our natural world, or to illustrate to budding scientists the importance of comparison, measurement, observation, and record keeping.

CONNECTIONS

Read some of Steve Jenkins’ other books:

·         Jenkins, Steve. Prehistoric Actual Size. ISBN: 0618535780

·         Jenkins, Steve. Biggest, Strongest, Fastest. ISBN: 0395861365

·         Jenkins, Steve. Hottest, Coldest, Highest, Deepest.  ISBN: 061849488X

·         Jenkins, Steve. Almost Gone: The World’s Rarest Animals. ISBN: 0060536004

And many others

Ø  These books are wonderful introductions to spark a child’s interest in wildlife and the natural world!