Cover Image: Polar

Polar

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Member Reviews

I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher.
The book covers both the North and South poles. It is organized by the seasons. It is great for middle-grade readers.

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This is a stunning work by L. E. Carmichael on the knowledge to share on Polar habitat. Climatic conditions explained were good enough to understand the greenhouse effect's impact.
I liked the way he explained differentiation based on both poles, specially the cycle of species in terms of their fooding and survival.
There is lot to learn for novices and even for the middlegraders to keep in mind that such is the way going for those poles and we need to be concerned from our very young age to save the nature.

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Thanks to Netgalley and Kids Can Press for the ARC of this!

I loved the format of this book - broken up by adaptation and month/area, this was easy to follow. I absolutely loved the art style. There was a good amount of animals included. I’m glad it touched on climate change at the end.

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An amazing book with gorgeous illustrations and lots of great information about for the Arctic and Antarctica . Highly recommend for kids and adults alike

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Thank you to the author, Kids Can Press and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a stunning children's book on nature, animals and climate at the two poles of our earth. I loved the setup with a monthly calender, showing comparisons between life in the Artic and the Antarctic. The illustrations are fantastic, and the sections at the end give resources and a glossary, which is unusual in a children's book - but great to have. I am hoping this will come out in German, as I would love to gift this to various friends. Highly recommend!

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This was a fun non-fiction book. I like that it gave brief glimpses of different aspects of life at either polar, and that it included information about various animals. I also enjoyed the format, examining what may be happening at both poles during each month of the year. The artwork was absolutely gorgeous, as well. I would recommend this to readers that enjoy learning about animals, the earth, and different habitats.

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Polar is a short, but informative introduction to our polar regions and some of the animals that inhabit these regions. Some topics introduced in this book include where the polar regions are located, the polar seasons, how climate change is affecting the polar regions, and how the polar regions affect the rest of the world. I think this book is a fun and beautifully illustrated introduction to the Arctic and Antarctica. Great for kids or even adults who don’t know much about the polar regions and would like to learn in an accessible and unintimidating way. Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

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I especially loved how this book has two stories on opposite pages; one with an Arctic animal and one with an Antarctic animal. It would be perfect for readers to compare and contrast. There are also many text features that can help readers find and understand information. Nicely done!

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Polar: Wildlife at the Ends of the Earth takes readers to the outer edges of our amazing planet without the need for expedition outerwear!

Complete with maps, facts, and pictures, this book educates readers not only on these arctic inhabitants, but provides insight into the harsh realities of survival in such unforgiving regions of the Earth. This book gave me flashbacks to middle school science class—in the best way possible. The author not only covers popular arctic animals, but also sprinkles in plenty of lesser-known creatures

Artistically, the layout of this book is genius. With a monthly, side-by-side comparison of the two “polar” opposite regions, readers of any age will enjoy seeing what happens throughout the changing seasons. Reading Polar: Life at the Ends of the Earth reaffirms why the polar regions should be added to your travel bucket list!

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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ — Beautiful cover on this book.

"From the author of the critically acclaimed The Boreal Forest comes a stunning exploration of the animals that have adapted to survive in Earth’s harsh polar regions." Polar: Wildlife at the Ends of the Earth, authored by L.E. Carmichael and illustrated by Byron Eggenschwiler, is a beautifully illustrated book that takes readers on a fascinating journey through a year in the polar regions.

Despite bitter cold, ferocious winds, and six months of darkness, many animals have adapted to stay alive in these harsh conditions. The book explores how animals at opposite ends of the Earth survive using similar adaptations. It's amazing to learn about how animals like arctic foxes, emperor penguins, and narwhals use unique survival techniques such as fur on their feet or echolocation just to breathe.

The information is well laid out in easy-to-follow spreads devoted to a month with themed introductions and two stories on opposite pages - one about an animal in the Arctic and another about an animal in Antarctica. Extra spreads cover facts such as winter weather, seasons, and more. The vivid graphics are colorful and eye-catching for both young and old readers alike.

The book concludes with a description of climate change's impact on polar regions' disruptions that are sure to have global consequences. A glossary, further reading, author's sources, an index, and ideas for what you can do to help are also included.

Although some readers may find the font size small for their liking (especially older readers), this book is perfect for anyone interested in nature or polar-related topics.

**ARC Via NetGalley**

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Kiddo (9) and I really enjoyed this book about the animals that live in the polar regions. He is very much into zoology at the moment, so it was a good fit for a bedtime read-aloud.

The book is structured as a journey through a year, month-by-month, in both the Arctic and Antarctica, with each month and region featuring a different animal. So it begins with Arctic - March (arctic fox) and then Antarctica - March (polar skua) and progresses through the year until reaching March again with musk oxen (Arctic) and petrel (Antarctica). This allows the reader to see the progression of time and the progress of midnight sun and polar night. It is also a very interesting structure as it illustrates how one is in summer and one in winter during the same months.

The illustrations are beautiful and really add to the story, especially as they feature each section's animal. They are colorful and look like paintings. They also illustrate the midnight sun and polar night sections well.

Kiddo and I learned a lot about how animals survive in the polar regions and the many adaptations they have developed to thrive there (huddling! antifreeze!).

I would recommend this to any elementary classroom and library collection because kids who love animals and science will really enjoy it (and learn a lot in the process).

*Thanks to NetGalley and Kids Can Press for providing an early copy for review.

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This is so cute! One of my favourite books of 2023 so far. Great artwork, great information on the animals. Entertaining for both kids and adults. I love the calendar-like setup, it's different from other polar books geared towards kids. Definitely recommended.

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What a marvelous book to help each learn much about the polar regions and all that is contained therein. It even has glossary, resources, and things that any of us can do to help preserve this amazing habitat.
The beautiful artistry of Byron Eggenschwiler makes it more real and for us to have more appreciation of all of the wildlife that many of us will never be able to visit.
I loved it and so will my family.
Well suited for reading WITH someone of any age including ESL, and great for gifting to anyone, but especially to any school or your public library!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book on Adobe Digital Editions from Kids Can Press via NetGalley. Thank you!

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This is a wonderful book for everyone (kids and grown ups) that has some curiosity about nature, animals or science.
It's a very informative book, but at the same time it uses simple terms accessible to everyone.
And the illustrations are simply stunning!! They almost make you feel like your actually in the Polar regions!
Really enjoyed it, and as a biologist I wish I had read this book while growing up! 
Nevertheless, I'm absolutelly going to get this book some day for my future kids and my personal collection.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange of an honest review.

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This book could be part of so many of my teaching units-activism, regions of the earth, or nonfiction text structures. It teaches all you need to know about the polar regions from the life that inhabits it, to climate change, to understanding the weather and climate. It brings the reader on a trip through the region each month if the year and shows what is happening.

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Polar is a nicely done and informative children's book that explains the differences between the arctic and the Antarctic during each month of the year. It has good information about climate, animals, plants in both regions throughout the year. The illustrations are full-page and nice too.

Thank you to netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

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I was very excited to see this book come across on net galley today, because it is EXACTLY the type of book I was looking for at Christmas to gift to my friend's young son that is obsessed with penguins. It may not have been available for Christmas, but at least it will be out in time for his birthday! The art in this book is very nostalgic for me. It reminds me of the old educational board books and kids encyclopedias I used to read when I was young. This is marketed as a kids book and I feel like some of the language and concepts discussed, like circadian rhythm and climate change, are a little advanced for younger kids. But for older (9-10) year olds should be able to understand without help. I would really like to see this team put together more books in this style for other environments like Savannah, Everglades, or Rainforests, if they haven't already. It's beautifully done and very informative for little ones. I also like that at the end of the book there are a list of age appropriate websites for curious children to visit if they want to learn more as well as a glossary for unfamiliar terms. I am totally blown away by how carefully put together Polar is. I would have loved something like this as a child.

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