Which? What? Why? New Zealand Country Wildlife

Once again Dave Gunson has captured the natural curiosity of children asking many questions about New Zealand Wildlife in two different settings – the forest and the countryside.

The books in this series are set out in almost a graphic novel layout with short paragraphs and simple sentences explaining the technical details. Each page has colourful drawings including humour and speech bubbles giving more information about the topic – for example “The collective term for a group of owls is a ‘parliament ‘… but Mrs Gunson prefers a watchfulness of owls.”

Although the publishers recommend this book for the 8-12 age group, students in my Year 2/3 class have enjoyed reading these books and they have stimulated a lot of oral language discussions. They would also be suitable to read aloud to a class in small sections, particularly as an introduction to a unit or topic.

Reluctant readers would also enjoy these books as the sections are short, interesting and the element of humour makes for enjoyable reading. The series makes an excellent reference book for those backyard finds or could even be the basis for a scavenger hunt where students could take a photo of their finds to share with their classmates or in the home school environment.

Title: Which? What? Why? New Zealand Country Wildlife

Author: Dave Gunson

Publisher: Bateman Books

ISBN: 978-1-98-853888-4

978-1-98-853887-7

RRP: $19.99

Format: Paperback

Date of Publication: October 2021

Ages: 8-12 years

Themes: NZ Nature Non-Fiction

Do you have any advisory warnings for this book?

Would this book work as a read aloud? Yes.

Is there a particular part of the country that it’s set in? Country and Forest

Reviewer: Ange Birks, Classroom Teacher, Ōhinewai School, North Waikato

How are you recommending this book: Highly Recommended

What’s the book’s opening sentence? Why do swamps smell funny sometimes? How many trees does it take to make a forest?

Buy this book here.