Mom Says/Kid Says

Courtesy: Goodreads

Welcome to the May edition of Mom Says/Kid Says where I as a mother read a book with my four year old son, Sammy, and we review it together. This month, we review And the Winner is...Amazing Animal Athletes written by Etta Kaner and illustrated by David Anderson. 

Mom Says

This 36 page book contains facts about animals which are presented as an Olympic event called World Animal Games (that's WAG for short). The story is quite witty and contains many puns. 

A walrus and a cockatoo provide insightful commentary as we witness sporting events performed by animals and even humans. The format is as follows: first an event is described, such as a high jump. Second, we are given a description of the contenders, such as a puma and a flea. Third, the event actually takes place (we watch them jump) Fourth, the winner is announced along with facts as to why that animal was victorious. For example, fleas would win a high jump because they have a rubber pad a move their legs which stores energy to make them proficient jumpers. Fifth, the human then competes just to see how they would measure up to the animals in that sporting event. Spoiler Alert…The humans never win!

Kid Says

My son prefers fiction books with a story line such as the Little Critter series by Mercer Mayer. It was fun for him to see the animals as the illustrations were great and to see their pictures, learn their names, and discover a small fact about them. For example, he didn't know that a flea's food is blood!

Verdict

Library Bag. When my son is older and shows more interest in non-fiction, I may move it to bookshelf. But for now, it is going in my library bag. 

*Mrs. Hoffman and son were provided with a free copy from netgalley.com.