There are many books about animal babies, but Jenkins and Page, whose 2003 collaboration What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? received a Caldecott Honor, stand out by zeroing in on the first day of existence. Their continuum of 22 animals runs from "Even more helpless than a human" (the Siberian tiger whose eyes are shut at birth) to "Get with the program" ("My herd stays on the move," says a newborn blue wildebeest, "and I have to keep up!") and "You're on your own, kid" (the newly hatched leatherback turtle must dodge danger by itself). Jenkins uses an impressive array of textured cut paper to capture the characters in all their furry, prickly, and downy glory. Not surprisingly, many portraits are of mothers with their offspring, but one example of male parenting is sure to stick in readers' minds: Darwin's frog, which creates a kind of nursery in its throat (Jenkins shows the offspring jauntily peeking out from his father's mouth, like nature's idea of a nesting doll). Brief, detailed profiles of each animal close out this handsome examination of child-rearing across the animal kingdom. Ages 4-8. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Jenkins and Page find yet another inviting way to connect young human readers and listeners to creatures who share their world, presenting 22 baby animals that describe their very first day of life. From the kiwi that kicked its way out of its egg to the polar bear cuddled up with its mother snug and warm under the snow, each page or spread reveals an animal's initial independence and the level of parental care. There's a splendid variety, from familiar tigers and giraffes to capybaras and megapodes--even a parent bug, which gets its name because the mother, unlike most insects, stays around to guard her young larvae. The focus of Jenkins' cut-and-torn paper illustrations is on the babies, each shown against a plain background whose color may represent something of its world. Sometimes the parent is visible or partially visible. A short paragraph of read-aloud text appears on the page along with a tiny label. The backmatter reintroduces each animal with further information about where it can be found, how big it will get to be and other behaviors. While the authors have a splendid track record, it would still be nice to have sources or at least an acknowledgement that an animal expert had vetted these facts. Appealing to a wide age range, this is another crowd pleaser. (Informational picture book. 2-7)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

What happens on the very first day of different animals' lives? Jenkins and Page depict 23 different animals (including a leatherback turtle, a giraffe, an emperor penguin, a polar bear, and a parent bug), each of whom narrates, in one or two sentences, what it could or could not do on day one. Some spreads contrast animals, such as the kiwi, who is self-sufficient from birth, and the Siberian tiger cub, who can't even open its eyes. Occasionally a baby animal is given a full double-page spread, as with the wood duck, who jumps out of the nest on one page and paddles after its mother on the next. The vibrant colors of the cut-paper collages give this book a verve that fills the space of the spare narrations. A glossary at book's end gives more information on each animal, so readers who are amazed, for example, that a mother zebra spends the first hour of her baby's life memorizing the baby's unique striped patterns, can find out more. Fun and very educational.--Fletcher, Connie Copyright 2010 Booklist

PreS-Gr 2-Another winner from this talented creative team. Jenkins's trademark cut-paper collages are up to their usual standard, which is to say they are outstanding, as he captures 23 different newborns on their first day of life. Some of the animals are familiar, such as giraffes and penguins, while others are more exotic, such as a sifaka, a muntjac, and a blue wildebeest. A few simple, clearly written sentences describe the wide variety of things that these youngsters can or cannot do upon entering the world. Children should find the information intriguing as they learn about capybaras that can swim and dive when only a few hours old and how mother zebras memorize the pattern of stripes on their babies so they can recognize them among the thousands of others in the herd. The striking depictions of mother and child set against full-bleed colored backgrounds or clean white space should make for many return readings. Additional information on each animal is included in the back matter. A first purchase for most libraries.-Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

"What did you do on your first day -- the day you were born? Probably not much" begins this book about baby animals' first hours of life. Jenkins and Page's simple text effectively highlights the differing degrees of independence of a variety of species' young. Brief descriptions touch on the animals' range of mobility (some can walk or swim, others must be toted about), sustenance (mothers' milk versus solid food), and the ways in which parents use patterns, sounds, and scents to recognize their young. "On my first day, my mother held me close so I wouldn't drift out to sea," says a sea otter. "I dozed on her belly while she floated in the waves." "On my first day, I trotted along with my mother," boasts a young blue wildebeest. "My herd was on the move, and I had to keep up!" Jenkins's torn- and cut-paper collage illustrations employ rounded edges and fuzzy textures to maximize the adorableness of the newborns as they take their first looks, steps, or leaps. End pages provide additional facts about the adult and baby creatures. danielle j. ford (c) Copyright 2013. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.