Slowly Goes the Manatee: A Sea Cow’s Journey [9780062791306]

Overview

Slowly, softly, swiftly, and with great curiosity, a manatee and her calf explore their underwater world. Art, science, and story meet in this narrative nonfiction picture book by the acclaimed creator of Sea Bear and Yoshi and the Ocean. Features extensive backmatter.

A manatee moves through the water slowly and gently, but that does not mean her life is without excitement. After the birth of her calf, the nurturing mother manatee introduces her baby to the world of the estuary, to the good things to eat, and to their underwater neighbors. The manatee calf absorbs these survival skills and explores the mangrove lined byways, using touch, sound, and smell to map her world.

Then, a storm shakes their shallow home, and the calf is swept away. The mother manatee becomes protective and fierce until her baby is safe at her side, and the seascape, mother, and calf settle once again.

Lindsay Moore, creator of the acclaimed Sea Bear, Yoshi and the Ocean, and Sun Bird, is an expert of narrative nonfiction picture books about animal behavior. The highly readable text is both poetic and scientific, informed by the author’s background in marine science. The underwater world and its inhabitants are gorgeously rendered in luminous watercolors.

Slowly Goes the Manatee is both a vivid page-turner and a distinguished informational book. This is an excellent choice for sharing in language arts and science classrooms or reading aloud at home. For fans of Jason Chin, Katherine Roy, Candace Fleming, and Brian Floca.

The extensive backmatter includes:

• a diagram of a manatee including fun facts
• an exploration of the other marine life found in the book
• more information about the estuary habitat and mangrove forests
• additional resources about manatees and conservation