Animals Born Alive and Well

World of Nature

by Ruth Heller

Text and illustrations introduce animals with fur or hair who nurse their young, breathe fresh air, and except for two species give birth to their young alive instead of laying eggs.

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Science, Childrens, Nonfiction, Nature, Education

44 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Author and illustration with a passionate interest in Korean culture. She lives with her husband in San Francisco, California.

Reviews

[Taylor Hart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Animals Born Alive and Well is a story all about mammals. Not only is it extremely cute and informative but it's a fun story to read to children because it rhymes! Oftentimes, non-fiction stories lack rhythm and rhyme so it's always exciting to find one that has those elements! The illustrations are look kind of old but are still eye catching. There were quite a few animals that I had never heard of in this book, so that's cool for young children....they love when they learn things that adults don't already know! I loved that the book also focused on diversity but highlighted something we all have in common: we are mammals!

(Non-fiction picture book)

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

we looked at most the pages and read most of it, but will definitely need to look at it again when she is older.

[Bekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book teaches children about all the different types of mammals and how diverse they are. From the smallest mammal the Shrew, to the largest mammal the Blue Whale. The book describes that all mammals have hair and breathe air, and almost all of them don't lay eggs, except two mammals. The story describes many different mammals living in the sea, on land, underground, ones with spots, little hair, big ones and small ones to show children how diverse mammals are. The book also adds that we, humans, are also mammals.

I enjoyed this book because it was educational, interesting, and it flowed very well. The author had a good rhyme scheme, and on each page, the illustrations of the animals included a caption of the type of animals shown. It would be a great help for a child who wants to learn about animals, and a great book to have for when teaching science.

[sincerely · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!

[Muse Here · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is truly a beautiful book. I love the rhymes and the educational facts. All these babies get milk from their Mama's, just like human babies. It's so cool to see. I'm nearly 50 and this book educated me. Wish I could've read this to my children when they were young. This is a great, soothing and gently paced book that is perfect for bedtime. I'm used to trying to read quickly before the child wants to turn the page, but this book has such full pictures on each page that it's entirely captivating. If you nurse your baby, this is a very enjoyable read. Honestly, I can't get through it without crying. No matter who I'm reading it to or how many times I've read it, I enjoy it so much that it always moves me to tears. Very well done.

[Arielle Hitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book for children who are interested in animals. Ruth Heller explains the different mammals and small facts about them. The characters are all of the different mammals featured. There is no plot. She uses lots of detail in the illustrations and it adds a more interesting effect while reading. I gave this book 5 stars because this book is perfect for any child beginning to learn about the different mammals.

[Cory Cornwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many uncommon animals pictured!

[Melinda Christensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was mesmerized while reading this book! Written in verse, it is very entertaining and covers nearly every animal known to man. Children love it as well!

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great compliment to mammals science unit. Lots of new to me animals, informative, and best of all beautifully illustrated.

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Heller introduces the attributes of mammals and surveys various types of mammals.

I like this one better than her plant book. She provides labels for all the mammals illustrated and stays on topic better. It isn't as great as her language arts series, but those are spectacular and hard to measure up to. The copy our library has is faded and showing its age. I'm guessing a newer copy would have better color and be more eye-catching. Kids who are animal lovers should like this book and would learn all sorts of animal names. Could be used in elementary science classes studying the attributes of mammals.

[Siskiyou-Suzy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The design is terrible. More than once I skipped over text because I just couldn't see it. Above, below, at the very edge of the page -- the text I was supposed to be reading was not always put in obvious places, and since each page also had animals labels on it, it's important to make the text obvious! Reading a children's book should not be a quest to find what you're supposed to read.

[Julie Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adore Ruth Heller's picture science books. I just bought this one because there isn't a single one left in the midyork library system, and I decided that I'm just going to buy them all. Every one of them have been amazing. I don't have kids anymore and my summer elementary library position is at its end, but I'm buying them for me. They're that good.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this for my oldest son for Christmas this year and finally got around to reading it to him tonight. The illustrations were pretty, but not as nice as the ones in "The Reason for a Flower". I like this series of biology books for children though - very fun.

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explores the world of mammals, that are born alive, that have fur, or hair who nurse their young and breathe fresh air. It even mentions the two that lay eggs, and tells of the smallest and the largest, and uses the term of viviparous.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heller teaches the reader about mammals through her rhyming text and her colorful illustrations. My second grade students love this book.

[Teri · Rating 4 out of 5]

GREAT book about mammals with fun rhymes, clear explanations, and good illustrations.

[Tanya Wadley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice book about animals with great illustrations. I liked it better on the second reading.

[Joyce Munzwandi]

Grade level: 2-5
A good book to teach about mammals and take a closer look at what their basic needs are in order to survive. Students can make comparisons of different animals

[Thomas Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gives a lot of information about what a mammal is. Students could help by saying the names of the animals they know.

[Private Account · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this book, but am really glad I have an evolution and classification of life poster to use to explain it to my four-year-old.

[Lu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super educational book about mammals with Lots off illustrations to show you the different types of mammals there are.

Illustrations are nice.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very lovely illustration and we learn a lot about mammals because of this beautiful vintage book.