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Gentle Giant Octopus: Read and Wonder
by
Karen Wallace,
Mike Bostock (Goodreads Author)
Follow a goggle-eyed octopus as she jets through the shadows, tentacles flying behind her. Finally she finds a well-hidden den in which to lay her eggs, which will dangle from the roof like grapes on a string. In silky verse, Karen Wallace explores the mysterious world of the octopus, while Mike Bostock’s flowing illustrations bring that world vividly to life.
Paperback, 32 pages
Published
April 1st 2002
by Candlewick Press
(first published January 1st 1998)
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I recently decorated my bathroom with pictures of sea monsters. One of the pictures is of a Kraken preparing to attack a sailing vessel. Turns out my nephew is terrified of octopuses, and my Kraken picture does not exactly leave him feeling encouraged to visit the bathroom! Obviously, this is not an ideal situation!
I don't want my nephew to fear octopuses. They are gentle, shy, curious, intelligent creatures, and they do not, as he believes, "eat people's heads." I am hoping that educating him a...more
I don't want my nephew to fear octopuses. They are gentle, shy, curious, intelligent creatures, and they do not, as he believes, "eat people's heads." I am hoping that educating him a...more
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The giant octopus is the largest of the 150 species of octopuses. The largest one ever found had tentacles 15 feet long. Despite their size, they are rather docile creatures with the curiosity and intelligence of the average cat.
Gentle Giant Octopus by Karen Wallace and illustrated by Mike Bostock is an introduction to the life cycle of the giant octopus and follows a female octopus as she finds the perfect place to lay her brood of eggs. Giant octopus females lay eggs only once and lock themsel...more
Gentle Giant Octopus by Karen Wallace and illustrated by Mike Bostock is an introduction to the life cycle of the giant octopus and follows a female octopus as she finds the perfect place to lay her brood of eggs. Giant octopus females lay eggs only once and lock themsel...more
An interesting book about giant octopi, an animal that we generally don't give much thought to at all. I learnt a lot about octopus behaviour, which is really quite astounding. I didn't know that they could regenerate their tentacles if they become damaged for instance. My 8 year old enjoyed reading the book with me, however he found the accompanying CD a bit too young for him (three of the four tracks consist of the book being read aloud in different formats, the fourth is an octopus song).
Library book.
P absolutely loves this one, and no doubt we will soon be purchasing it for her as well. Its target audience is a lot older than toddler age, but she loves reference books, so thus we have many.
I was a bit put off by the constant reference to the impending death of the mother octopus, but I understand these things are needed in childrens' literature sometimes.
P absolutely loves this one, and no doubt we will soon be purchasing it for her as well. Its target audience is a lot older than toddler age, but she loves reference books, so thus we have many.
I was a bit put off by the constant reference to the impending death of the mother octopus, but I understand these things are needed in childrens' literature sometimes.
This book was a little sad. The female giant octopus dies once her babies hatch. And although she lays about 60,000 eggs only 2 or 3 make it to adulthood.
We did learn a lot and the pictures were very well done. It was especially nice to see the illustrations of the eggs and how they develop.
There are two kinds of text. One is the 'gentle' story with a nice, soft feel to it. The other, in a different font, gives a bit more scientific information. It worked well in some parts, but in others it was...more
We did learn a lot and the pictures were very well done. It was especially nice to see the illustrations of the eggs and how they develop.
There are two kinds of text. One is the 'gentle' story with a nice, soft feel to it. The other, in a different font, gives a bit more scientific information. It worked well in some parts, but in others it was...more
Apr 27, 2011
Angie
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
picture-books,
library-books
I read this to my niece & nephews (7, 5, & 2). This is a beautifully illustrated story of a mama octopus's life cycle. the writing is very nice - fun to read out loud. It is rather sad though, as it is realistic.
It's pretty amazing how the octupus moves in the water, how they can squish their bodies and
how many eggs they lay (and how many get to be grown-up octopuses). The 2nd graders love this
book.
how many eggs they lay (and how many get to be grown-up octopuses). The 2nd graders love this
book.
This book includes some very interesting facts about octupuses. They are curious like cats, there are 150 varities, and their eggs hang from the roof of a cave.
Good example of narrative nonfiction and to use as a mentor for informational writing - good example of how to write in a narrative "PBS" voice/way.
This is a good child's book about the Giant Octopus.
Science series
very broad information, a good resouce for showing non fiction books and their form and format
This book gives all kinds of information about octopus. I didn't know many things about them.
This book would be great for students to write a summary about it. They could talk about things they did and didn't know before reading the book.
This book would be great for students to write a summary about it. They could talk about things they did and didn't know before reading the book.
Maura loves octupi. I thought this book would be very dry but it was wonderfully written AND informative.
Apr 06, 2013
Niki
marked it as to-read
Mar 01, 2013
Rhonda
marked it as to-read
Jan 24, 2013
Elizandrei Sumudlayon
marked it as to-read
Jan 23, 2013
Melissa Quesada
marked it as to-read
Jan 22, 2013
Anne
marked it as to-read
Jan 15, 2013
Beth Moore
marked it as to-read
Jul 31, 2012
Cheryl in CC NV
marked it as incompletely-investigated
Apr 08, 2012
Cybersindi
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
englische-kinderb-cher
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