Smart about sharks

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

It's time to learn about the sea's most feared (and most misunderstood) residents: sharks!

Owen Davey returns to nonfiction to explain the mysteries of those denizens of the deep. Some deadly, some not-so-deadly, and almost all just generally misunderstood. Exciting and detailed illustrations fill the page and educate young readers about these thrilling residents of the sea! Delivering information with the same whimsical text and brash illustration that saw his previous book win the affection of the Wall Street Journal , Smart About Sharks is sure to have teeth!

Owen Davey is a freelance illustrator, living and working out of Leicester, United Kingdom. He graduated with a First Class BA in Illustration from Falmouth University. Davey's work has been published in every continent (except Antarctica), including picture books in the United Kingdom, America, Australia, Germany, France, Portugal, China, and Korea. He has worked for some impressive clients, including the New York Times , Microsoft, and Orange. This is his first book about sharks.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

In a stylized guide to sharks featuring cheekily titled spreads ("All Fins Considered"; "Eat, Prey, Hunt"), Davey explores various aspects of sharks including their anatomy, behavior, reproduction, and the myths surrounding them. A spread devoted to "awards" honors the epaulette shark for its "astounding ability of walking out of water" and the nurse shark as the "laziest," and a "weird and wonderful" section highlights some of the striking diversity among sharks. Davey's crisp, matte illustrations capture the animals' naturalistic attributes while evoking a sense of their mystery and allure; players of the popular app Two Dots, also illustrated by Davey, may notice that the sea tortoise and squid in a section about sharks' diet look a bit familiar. It's an engaging and visually sophisticated addition to shark-lovers' libraries. Ages 6-up. (Aug.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

School Library Journal Review

Gr 1-4-Tongue-in-cheek headings, descriptive text, and art with a retro color palette make this an alternative take on the typical shark book. As fun to read as it is informative, this title covers the diet, hunting techniques, social life, size, and biology of eight orders of sharks. The layout is well designed, and the illustrations, rendered digitally, are appealing and detailed. The color palette consists of earth tones, muted golds and turquoise, and corals-colors perfectly suited to the undersea world of sharks. Some subjects receive an entire spread, such as the body diagram of a Caribbean reef shark. The work culminates with a warning that much of the shark population is at risk and a brief explanation as to why. Tips for ecologically sensitive living that are accessible for readers (recycling plastic, eating sustainable seafood, and being aware of energy usage) are also included. VERDICT Consider this amusing and edifying work for summer displays and artsy kids who also happen to like sharks.-Gretchen Crowley, Alexandria City Public Libraries, VA © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

This book's engaging informative content is rivaled only by its uncommonly sophisticated illustrations. Davey (Mad about Monkeys, 2015) discusses the complexities and diversity of shark species, beyond their man-eating reputation. The book is indexed by taxonomic order of sharks, making it a useful resource for research into specific species. In fact, an easy-to-understand flowchart of how sharks are classified is included in the introduction and serves as the basic structure of the book's various topics. The main focus is on exactly what adaptations have made sharks some of the most biologically successful predators on earth. There are also several references to threats facing shark populations today and the impact of human actions on their survival. Witty parlance characterizes the section headings, and detailed scientific facts are presented alongside beautifully immersive illustrations. Sharks, so often feared and misunderstood, are a high-interest subject for this all-around superior nonfiction resource.--Anderson, Erin Copyright 2016 Booklist