CM Magazine: The Wonder in Water

________________ CM . . . . Volume XII Number 12 . . . . February 17, 2006

cover
The Wonder in Water.

Diane Swanson.
Toronto, Annick Press, 2005.
44 pp., pbk. & cl., $9.95 (pbk.), $19.95 (lib. bnd.).
ISBN 1-55037-936-4 (pbk.), ISBN 1-55037-937-2 (lib. bnd.).

Subject Heading:
Water-Juvenile fiction.

Grades 3-7 / Ages 8-12.

Review by Elaine Fuhr.

***½ /4

excerpt:

SLITHERING SLIME: Among the weirdest travelers in raindrops and wind are spores from slime molds. After heavy rains, tiny cells creep out of the spores. They eat things such as bacteria and bits of rotting plants. You might see some slime mold cells that have massed together. They form jellylike blobs that slither s-l-o-w-l-y over damp lawn and logs. The distance they cover in an hour is no greater than the width of a wire in a paper clip.

The Wonder In Water, written by Diane Swanson, is brimming with incredible facts about water and many of the creatures and plants that depend on it for life. The reader will read about how the waters of our world from the Arctic to the Antarctic support life, even in the tiniest amounts. Did you know that one raindrop may contain whole seeds, spores and one-celled amebas, or that life survives in ice? Amazing! Did you also know that you have killer sweat? Now, that's really creepy! This book must be read from cover to cover to discover all the fascinating information that it contains, and, because it is a very manageable length, children will have no difficulty doing just that. Brilliant photographs and simple illustrations highlight the text and add "Wow" factor to this well written, highly readable book for children and young people. I highly recommend this book to all those interested in the wonders of our world.

Highly Recommended.

Elaine Fuhr is an elementary, middle school and special needs teacher in Wabamun, AB.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364 Hosted by the University of Manitoba.

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