Cover Image: The Animal Awards

The Animal Awards

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

This book opens with a list of all the nominees and photos. From there it goes onto the awards which are given very clever names. It is a great way for children to learn about new animals as all of the winners are not common animals, like the Lions Mane Jellyfish. Each winner has information on the winner, catagory, how long it lives, native to and diet in addition to a cartoon like pictures of the species. This is a great learning tool for children as well as informative, Would be good for science in school or homeschool.

Was this review helpful?

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

Was this review helpful?

This book contains lots of information about different animals, presented as an animal olympics with various awards such as the Air Speed Record, Nifty Tool-User and Best Display awards. The colours are bright and engaging throughout and the information is presented attractively, with a larger passage of text followed by smaller chunks.

My only slight issue is that some of the illustrations are a little too cartoony.

Was this review helpful?

The Animal Awards by Martin Jenkins is beautifully illustrated book about animals. Any kids would love this book. The pictures are bright and the animal description is funny and creative.

Was this review helpful?

A fun book teaching people all ages about how amazing animals can be - and giving awards in the process. The illustrations are really funny and the knowledge is just perfect to make the kids curious about nature and animals and perfect for adults to use as fun facts at parties.

Was this review helpful?

The Animal Awards is illustrated by Tor Freeman and written by Martin Jenkins. This book invites readers to celebrate the most spectacular species in the animal kingdom. Fifty creatures are awarded prizes to celebrate their most outstanding talents and some unusual skills. Who will win the Terrific Teeth Award? Who will claim the title of Most Smelly? Who will win the prize for Best at Pretending To Be A Plant? Celebrate with 50 brilliant animals from around the world who represent nature's rich tapestry.

The Animal Awards is an interesting read. Each award is a two page spread with information and fun facts about the animal and why it won its particular prize on one side and an illustration of it in its natural habitat or illustrations with even more information on the other. I liked the information that was chosen for the award winners. There is a nice mix of basic facts that are important and some fun or silly facts. The text is well written, and does not talk down to readers or over simplify the information. The illustrations impart for good additional information, but I found it to be a little clunky. To be honest the artwork was a little nostalgic for me, it reminded me of some of the illustrations from children's books I read as a child back in the 1970's. There is nothing wrong with the style, but it just felt old to me. I did like that there was an index, so if readers want to know about a certain animal, trait, or habitat they can explore the book that way.

The Animal Awards is a nice collection of animal information, and would be worth a look for that. However, I was not wowed by the overall presentation.

Was this review helpful?

This book is so much fun!
Arranged as an Animal Olympics, each animal presented is the best at something.
The useful information and fun facts throughout make this a great overview of several species of animals, which could easily lead into greater study on any or all of the subjects.
A great addition to any library!

Was this review helpful?

This is a book that goes through a variety of animals and gives facts about them, with the conceit that the animals are given "awards" for being Best at something. The writing is fine, and the facts are interesting, but the artwork is just not very good. It is very amateurish and the animals don't even really look like themselves. I really can't recommend it based on that.

Was this review helpful?

4.5 rounded up - so so good. Absolutely love the concept of the awards in this book, so clever and fun! I would absolutely buy this book for a child interested in different animals. The only possible minor draw back, is the big wall of text on each page, might cause an issue keeping the attention of some kids. Maybe some funky fonts or different text bubbles/boxes etc would have been better for visual stimulation and to break up the text.

Was this review helpful?

<em>The Animal Awards</em> by Martin Jenkins and illustrated by Tor Freeman is an adorable children's book that presents various facts about animals in a rather clever way. Instead of merely offering this educational information, it does so through giving each creature an award for various aspects of their personalities. From the Nifty Tool award to the Shocking award, each animal has something amazing to showcase for the world.

I loved the concept for this book as any entertaining way to provide facts is going to be worthwhile for a child to read. And <em>The Animal Awards</em> does a pretty brilliant job of engaging its readers whilst teaching them. The information was dense, but not so much that it would be daunting to read, which I also appreciated. I know very well how some children can take one look at a book and think that it's just too much to read.

It also offered the opportunity for adults reading along with children to prompt them to guess at which animals might win each award, something that I personally think will build a lot of entertainment. But this also builds critical thinking skills as well. I even learned a few things from this book that I hadn't known before, which is always something I'm ecstatic to see in a children's story. And I loved the fact that it wasn't always one animal mentioned in each section, but rather other animals were referenced in relation to each award.

The illustrations work well within the book. I imagine they will keep young readers engaged, especially when the majority of the animals are cute to look at. At times they did seem a little too goofy for my taste, but I feel as though the majority of the intended audience will appreciate it.

A book with a wonderful concept for how to present educational information, <em>The Animal Awards </em>is definitely one for the shelves of classrooms and homes. I could certainly see it on the shelves at my work.

<em>I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</em>

| <a href="https://www.instagram.com/spasciuti/">Instagram</a> | <a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/SPasciuti_">Twitter</a> | <a href="spasciuti.com">Reader Fox Blog</a> | <a href="https://www.bloglovin.com/@spasciuti">Bloglovin’</a> | <a href="https://m.facebook.com/SteffPasciutiReaderFox/">Facebook</a> |</p>

Was this review helpful?

This is one of the most gorgeous, eye-catching children's books I've ever seen. My son is two and is OBSESSED with animals. He loves seeing pictures of them, watching them on tv, and especially seeing them in real life. This book is absolutely fantastic for introducing him to a wider range of animals and we will definitely be adding it to our collection.

Was this review helpful?

Making up spurious awards to give to animals is actually a great way to deliver some really good nature information here, and a host of trivia alongside it. A thread of spider silk that could loop round the globe would still only weigh one pound; chameleons' tongues can stretch at a speed of sixteen feet a second. Sometimes the artwork is a little too cartoonish, and some of the writing a little cutesy (labouring the "elegance" of the giraffe), but on the whole there is a lot here, from deep-diving whales to mention of fish-eating bats, and from hand-standing skunks to chimpanzees using five different tools in their honey-gathering. It won't give the young reader a big picture about biology, life sciences and evolution, but in having so many small-scale images the end result will be pretty impressive learning. Four and a half stars.

Was this review helpful?

4.5 stars

The animals chosen and the information on each were an enjoyable read. I liked that the first page is the general info while the next page is more illustration of the animals with more short info's.

The only problem I had with this book is that the info under the portraits are the same info in the paragraphs.

Another thing is that I'm really picky with the artstyle (do excuse me for that, I used to watch a lot of anime). Sometimes it looks cute but other times it looks quirky but not really my type of artstyle (it kinda gave me the Simpsons artstyle somewhat). This is the first time I see a hand drawn art in a book but the colors chosen was nice in most of them.

Overall, it was a good and enjoyable read. I really liked the way the illustrations were arranged and the full on art pages.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with the digital copy for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

This book was received as an ARC from Quarto Publishing Group - Frances Lincoln Childrens in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

This book was too adorable to pass up. I know our kindergartners and first graders will go crazy for this book and will love every page and the names of the animals and awards. Some of the animals caught my attention and this book will also be great for the classrooms inspiring teachers to create new projects for the kids and display them for the parents. The illustrations done in the book were extravagantly brilliant that anyone will want to take a look at this book and we can't wait to share this with our library and schools.

We will consider adding this book to our J Non-Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

Was this review helpful?

This book is a gem in that it’s simple but done very well. Each page has an animal, with a paragraph or two about it, a cute illustration of the animal, some illustrations of cool aspects of their body/lifestyles, and then 3 or 4 cool facts about them at the bottom. What I love about this format is that it makes non-fiction accessible and this book could be used for so many purposes within the classroom. A simple browsing book, or a resource for a mini project where each kid gets an animal. It could also be a fun morning read to do an animal a day!

Loved this. And the idea of giving each animal an award for what they are awesome at is also fun and social/emotionally relevant:).

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5!

Was this review helpful?

This book is laid out like an awards show.

It shows the award, names it’s winner or the top nominees, and describes the animal and their characteristics. For instance, the Earthworm in the winner of the Soil- Improvement Award. It shows that earthworms eat plant roots and organic matter. When they eat, they take in minerals. They poop what is called “cast”. That cast is rich in chemicals that plants need in a form they can absorb.

This book is very informative. It uses awards to teach about a variety of animals and their characteristics. The illustrations are colorful and drawn with humor.

I recommend this book as a good way to teach about animals in a fun and entertaining way.


I received an ARC from Quarto Publishing through NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinion or rating of this book. I am voluntarily submitting a review.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group – Frances Lincoln Children’s Books for an early copy of The Animal Awards by Martin Jenkins. This book is full of facts and information about different animals presented as a list of awards. Each award lists the award name, animal name, where it lives, what type of animal it is, what the animal eats, where it lives, and lots of other information. Some examples are the Fabulous Display Award goes to the great bustard, the Soil Improvement Award goes to the earthworm, and the Tangliest Tentacles Award goes to the lion’s mane jellyfish. Sometimes there were groups of animals winning an award such as the disguise awards.

This book was a lot of fun to read and you could learn a lot while reading it. It would be a great book to read to a child really interested in animals and/or really inquisitive and eager to learn.

Was this review helpful?

The Animal Awards uses the entertainment awards ceremony in an innovative way: to present a natural history of unusual animals who would probably not be in a collection together, or maybe not in a book at all.

Using categories such as “The Amazing Egg Award”(ostrich), “The Best Bouncer Award” (kangaroo), and “The Magical Healer Award” (axolotl), Freeman introduces fifty animals, insects, and sea creatures.

The book is entertaining and informative with engaging text and charming illustrations. Each “award” spread has a description of the animal on one side with basic information: category (e.g., bird, reptile, insect, or mammal), habitat, lifespan, and diet. In describing why the animal has won the award, Freeman offers a brief profile of the creature with interesting facts. On the facing page, an illustration or series of illustrations exhibits additional facts. In the illustration of the tortoise, for example, winner of “The Centenarian Award,” the illustration compares the lifespan of the tortoise, Greenland shark, black coral, and ocean clam. The illustration page for the lion, winner of “The Marvellous Mane Award,” has four smaller drawings showing what life is like in a lion pride.

In addition to providing a natural history of these interesting animals—also including penguins, elephants, bats, terns, bullfrogs, cheetahs, jellyfish, and so many more—the book sensitively discusses extinction and threats to endangered populations.

This is a great book for children that uses humor to convey a wide array of interesting factual information. Although some of the vocabulary or concepts may require the help of a parent, teacher, or guardian to understand on first exposure, I think this is a book that kids will return to again and again for the fun facts and absolutely adorable and informative illustrations. It would be a wonderful gift and addition to a school or home library.

Was this review helpful?

Fresh, fun and full of facts, The Animal Awards will have kids cheering and learning about some of the world's most spectacular species!

With each spread dedicated to intriguing facts about the worthy winner and some cool, cartoon style illustrations of the animals honouring their golden medals, this engaging children's book makes for a perfect addition to any child's bookshelf.

Was this review helpful?

Who is not enamoured with award shows? The Emmy's? the Oscars? Wow! "The Animal Awards" gives the most prestigious animals accolades for their amazing talents and some unusual skills.

This non-fiction, educational, extremely interesting book celebrates the best and finest in the animal kingdom. 50 superstar animals are documented and kids will love to find out why they are voted the best.


Here are a few examples of the categories offered and the winners:

* The Fabulous Display Award goes to Great Bustard
* The Nifty Tool Award - The Chimpanzee
* The Soil Improvement Award - The Earth Worm
* The Family Award - Emperor Penguin
* The Marvellous Mane Award - The Lion
* The Best Bouncer Award - The Kangaroo
* The Shocking Award - The Electric Eel
* The Co-Operation Award - Honeybee, Naked Mole Rat, Gray Wolf, Clownfish and Sea Anemones
* The Spinning Award - The Spider --- just to cite a few.



The cartoon style illustrations enrich the informative text and the winner sports a well deserved gold medal around it's neck as it rises into the spotlight above the runner-ups who have similar talents also. Each Star has a two-page spread with a lovely introduction by the author then more in-depth information on diet, location, and other intriguing facts. The premise of the book is fun and refreshing and I know kids will love it. It is presented in a way that is easy to follow and is full of facts and tidbits that will engage the reader and teach them why that animal was the winner.

This book would be a perfect addition to a classroom and/or an elementary school library. I personally learned a lot from the book myself and I highly, highly recommend it.

Was this review helpful?