ABC Zooborns! {with Giveaway}

Two years ago, I had the pleasure of receiving two books about baby animals born in captivity. These Zooborns were adorable and the stories about their personal histories and the status of their species in the wild was touching. (Click to see my review on the first two books.) Well, the authors Andrew Bleiman and Chris Eastland are back at it, with this summer’s release of a new picture book featuring more unbelievably cute critters. ABC ZooBorns! features twenty-five of them looking right at the young readers who will happily browse through this book.

That wasn’t a mistake, there are twenty-five animals for the letters A-Y, and in the final two-page spread, Z is, of course, for ZooBorns, and a compilation of all their images is featured. Each page has an oversized letter in the corner with the matching animal’s shadow resting on it, and the text is a statement from the animal’s perspective. Zoos from all over the world are represented here, starting with an anteater born at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, DC– the zoo my own children know very well! But the one that stole my heart the most was the baby marmoset born in the Alma Park Zoo in Australia, with his little face and big expression. Reading through the information provided on each animal in the final pages, I was happy to see that this species is labeled “Least Concern” level for conservation status, but other animals, such as the giant panda, are not as lucky and are considered endangered in the wild.

This picture book can be accessed by the very youngest children who will be attracted to the close-up photographs and the bright blocks of colors, and the information provided in the index will appeal to elementary school aged children, especially those who love to accumulate facts, such as how tall giraffe babies are at birth (6 feet!) and which animal is the third largest land animal (the hippo!).

With the crisp and striking photos and the wealth of information provided, ABC ZooBorns! goes well beyond a simple alphabet book. Share it with your own little animal lover today!

In addition to the book and the website, Zooborns.com, parents and children can access photos, information, and videos on the ABC ZooBorns app, designed for iPhone and iPad.

We’re happy to share the adorable animals of ABC Zooborns! with one lucky reader. Please leave a comment to be entered to win a copy of the book signed by the author Andrew Bleiman and the ABC Zooborns app, as well. (US shipping addresses only, please.) We’ll announce our winner in our September 19th giveaway column. This giveaway is now closed.

Dawn and her kids love that one of the world’s most well-known zoos is a short metro ride away from their home. Their trip to the zoo this summer was highlighted on her blog, my thoughts exactly.

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