Imagine You Are a Crocodile

Before reading this story, the thought of a realistic book about crocodiles being a soothing bed time story seemed unlikely. _Imagine You Are a Crocodile_ manages it quite well. The prose has a nice cadence; the alliteration is wonderful. The words glide off the tongue. The watercolor illustrations are a perfect match for the crocodile's swamp.The book is written with plenty of action without being too graphic. The crocodile hangs in the water; she jumps and snatches a heron as it flies by; she yawns, closes her eyes and sleeps in the sun. The mother crocodile cares for her newly hatched babies. The book even has some tension as a snake slithers toward the as yet unhatched crocodile eggs. The words paint a lovely picture of the crocodile's home. The words invoke the senses and invite discussions of the swamp. Flies buzz in the sunshine. The swamp is murky and green. At night, the swamp is steamy and black. Although this book is a fictional story, it does slide in some interesting information for those newly interested in crocs. Birds pick food from between the crocodile's teeth. The mother crocodile carries her babies in her mouth. _Imagine You Are a Crococile_ is a favorite at our house with both the parents and the kids. This one I'll never get tired of reading.

Containing wonderful watercolor illustrations of crocodiles, this is an inspiring introduction to life as seen through the eyes of a crocodile. I especially enjoyed the illustration showing the mother crocodile carrying the baby crocodiles in her mouth. My 8 year old daughter and I had read about this in research she did for a project so it was nice to see this scene depicted. My four year old enjoyed and learned from the book as well.