Many Biomes, One Earth by Sneed B. Collard III, illustrated by James M. Needham (Charlesbridge, 2008) gives a general overview of biomes on earth, explaining clearly the differences between a biome and a habitat and explaining why earth’s biomes may not look as they originally were before human intrusions.
As he describes the various terrestrial biomes of North and South America, this author places the animals into the setting with action sentences that correlate with the illustrations. Here’s an example from the page describing the temperate grasslands, or prairie:
“Prairie dogs, jumping mice, and other rodents dig tunnels into the earth. Rattlesnakes and black-footed ferrets also crawl into these cool, dark passages to hunt.”
He also addresses the reader with phrases such as “As you walk…” and “Poke under the leafy leaf layer…” The personable tone to the text makes it a pleasant read aloud, although the length of the text may work best with children ages 8 and up.
Although the book focuses on biomes in the Americas, the final page does mention how similar biomes are found around the world, with an accompanying map of the biomes of the world. I most appreciate that this text focuses on biomes rather than habitats, frequently reminding the reader that there is a difference between the two.
