Owings, Lisa. The King Cobra.

Owings, Lisa.     The King Cobra.   Scholastic/ Childrens Press   24p  $17.00 978-0-531-20882-3       elem  Series: Nature's Deadliest (Scholastic/Childrens) E-Bnes

           

This book provides information on the king cobra for young students, and focuses also on the people who work with these snakes to manufacture anti-venoms that save lives.  This slim volume starts out with a bang ... discussing the career  and bravery of a man who has survived numerous king cobra attacks as he works to develop anti-venom remedies for snake bites.  By focusing the beginning of the book on the power of the snake’s venom and efforts to create antidotes to it, the author grabs the reader’s attention right away.  Subsequently, she discusses the other physical aspects of the king cobra, its use as entertainment in India, and its diet and habits.  There is a good index and a list of resources for further information that are helpful.  The illustrations are colorful and apt, and they add to the book’s impact.

This reviewer checked out the factsurfer website and found it to be a good resource.  Nature’s Deadliest series includes twelve titles, including the African elephant, the Bengal tiger, and the Komodo dragon.  

                                                      --Carol Kennedy

Dorisi-Winget, Dianna. Pythons.

Dorisi-Winget, Dianna.  Pythons.  Capstone Publishers, 2012.  32p  $26.65    

ISBN 978-1-4296-6014-3  elm/ms (Grades 3-8)     E-BN       

     This book discusses the habitat, life cycle, relationship to predators, and behavior of pythons. Excellent photos accompany the text, which has highlighted words that are defined at the bottom of each page. It is a colorful book that will intrigue young readers who are interested in snakes. The photos and text pose no parental-consent issues, even those that refer to the killing of other animals and to reproduction.  Students who need information for reports will be quite satisfied with the content of the book, as will students who have a personal interest in reading about snakes.  The unique features that make a python different from other snakes and the differences among species are explained. The topic of keeping pythons as pets is discussed, although parents may be concerned that the book considers pythons “good pets”.   

     The series, Wild About Snakes, consists of eight titles, each one on one kind of snake. The differences among species, including their life cycles, habitats, predators and behaviors, are well explained.  There are crisp color photographs, a glossary, an index and references for further reading.      P

Subject: Python Snakes 

Lois McNicol