Actual Size

May 24, 2004
Animals in Action A trio of titles explores the animal kingdom. Actual Size by Steve Jenkins is the Caldecott Honor artist's latest foray into the natural world. Here, his signature cut- and torn-paper collage artwork depicts animals to scale, imitating fur and skin remarkably. The title page shows a "pygmy shrew, 2 inches long" and readers can view only one 12-inch eye of the giant squid (it can grow up to 59 feet long); the man-eating saltwater crocodile requires a three-page foldout to depict its toothy countenance.

Starred review from April 2, 2012
Jenkins pairs his customarily gorgeous brand of cut- and torn-paper collage with fascinating tidbits in this exploration of the vast world of beetles. Each insect is carefully crafted to highlight its unique characteristics—the feather-horn beetle’s fanlike antennae; the striking red markings on the back of a harlequin beetle—and several are shown actual size (terrifying in the case of some like the titan beetle and Fijian long-horn beetle). Readers will learn about basic beetle anatomy, as well as facts about specific species: the Australian tiger beetle “is the fastest runner in the insect world,” and the titan beetle’s jaws are strong enough to “snap a pencil in half.” Jenkins offers a wealth of information about beetles and presents it impeccably. Ages 4–8.

February 15, 2012
Jenkins' splendid array of beetles will surely produce at least one budding coleopterist. The colors and patterns of this ubiquitous insect (one out of four creatures on the planet is a beetle, Jenkins tells readers) are fascinating, as are the details about the various adaptations that beetles have made over millennia in response to their environment, diet, and predators. "Perhaps the innovation that has been most helpful to the beetle is its pair of rigid outer wings." Beautiful book design and a small but clear freehand-style type contribute to readers' appreciation of the elegant structure and variety of these creatures. Deep, bright hues in the torn-and-cut-paper-collage illustrations set each beetle with its own singular pattern and colors against generous white space. Actual-size silhouettes allow the detailed, larger illustrations to be matched with a realistic appraisal of each beetle's dimensions. A list of the several dozen featured beetles along with their Latin names and their principal geographic locations appears on a two-page opening at the back. Only a couple of quibbles: The author's claim that without the dung beetle "the world's grasslands would soon be buried in animal droppings" begs for a little further explanation; and the absence of a bibliography seems like an oversight. Otherwise, distinguished both as natural history and work of art. (Nonfiction. 7-12)

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Starred review from April 1, 2012

Gr 4-7-"Line up every kind of plant and animal on Earth..." says Jenkins at the start of his joyous celebration of beetle-mania, ."..and one of every four will be a beetle." From the minute clown beetle to the gigantic titan beetle (its jaws are strong enough to snap a pencil in half), the artist uses his trademark torn- and cut-paper creations to depict a wide sampling to introduce neophyte beetle lovers to the sumptuous world that awaits them. With more than 350,000 species known to science (and others being discovered as you read this review), Jenkins had his work cut out for him. Throughout the colorful, fact-filled pages runs a series of life-size silhouettes to give readers a proper perspective for comparisons. In informative snippets of hand-lettered text, he offers life-style data and basic beetle physiology, and quirky details such as the fact that museums use hide beetles to clean animal specimen bones, and that bombardier beetles squirt a blinding spray into the faces of their enemies. Suffice to say that Jenkins's enthusiasm for his subject shines through in this rich and varied compendium.-Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from April 1, 2012
Grades 3-5 *Starred Review* Through striking illustrations and intriguing information, this large-format book introduces the world of beetles. The text opens with the startling information that one quarter of every kind of plant and animal on Earth is a beetle. After an overview of body structure, sections are devoted to topics such as beetles' senses, behaviors, life cycles, communications, and defenses. The fully illustrated format will appeal to a younger audience, but the book is better suited to children who are already familiar with words such as toxin or pupa. Well regarded for his collages of cut and torn papers, Jenkins is in top form in these illustrations, offering intricate, precise images of beetles isolated on broad white pages. The pictures combine clarity of form with subtlety of texture and color. A typical double-page spread features several large-scale individual pictures with small-type paragraphs of information appearing alongside them. At the bottom of some pages, black silhouettes show the actual sizes of beetles pictured above. While the book lacks such traditional back matter as a glossary, source notes, and bibliographies, it includes a list of each species mentioned, its Latin name, and its locale. A richly varied and visually riveting introduction to beetles, both familiar and strange.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)

March 1, 2012
Jenkins brings his signature style to the world of beetles, a truly fascinating insect order, and highlights the amazing diversity of species. The book opens with basic beetle structure and function, and then covers topics such as reproduction, feeding, communication, and defense mechanisms, presenting illustrative cases across double-page spreads. As always, the design of the book is exemplary. The colorful cut-paper beetles stand out crisply from the white backgrounds, sometimes shown mid-action, sometimes laid out in neat rows like an old-school museum display that allows for easy cross-species comparison. The illustrations are remarkably detailed, right down to the intricate patterns on wing casings and the delicate nature of the insects' legs. The to-scale silhouettes found on the bottom of many spreads provide very helpful information (sometimes quite disconcerting -- check out the size of the violin beetle) on the range of beetle sizes. Back matter contains more facts about the featured beetles. danielle j. ford

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2012
Highlighting the amazing diversity of this truly fascinating insect order, the book opens with basic beetle structure and function and then covers topics such as reproduction, feeding, communication, and defense mechanisms. Jenkins's colorful cut-paper illustrations are remarkably detailed, and the to-scale silhouettes found on the bottom of many spreads provide very helpful information on the range of beetle sizes.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)