Author/Illustrator: Kerby Rosanes
Plume: An Imprint of Penguin Random House 2021
Softcover, 96 Page Activity Book Ages 11 – 99
Color your way through this extraordinary book of animals and ecosystems that are disappearing around the world.
Fragile World is a detailed coloring book that explores fifty-six endangered and vulnerable animals. The illustrations are unforgettable, both intricate and whimsical typical of this artist. Rosanes includes a section in the back of this book to feature each animal and the main reasons they are endangered. This enhances the overall coloring experience with knowledge that can be passed along because with awareness comes caring.
To say I like this book would be an understatement. This reviewer revels in anything well done that is directed towards education about conservation, wildlife, and ecosystems that informs without preaching. The age bracket here is under-represented. I’ve watched a careful eleven-year-old do a remarkably detailed job coloring her favorite animals. She used colored pencils which, given the paper and back-to-back printing, is the best option. There are two aspects of this book that I would wish to change. First is the aforementioned back-to-back printing due to bleed-through if using markers, and I would also wish for the pages to be perforated so that coloring can be done on a flat surface and shared with aunts, uncles, teachers, or grandmas to spread that vital conservation information further. That would be the only reason for a 4 ½ star rating.
Fragile World by Kerby Rosanes gets 4 ½ stars from this reviewer.