Wow! What a great book for kids and parents. I love an informative book. Not only are my kids learning something new, but I usually am too! This will definitely be added to a family favorite and open discussion about favorite animals and what their role is in nature. We have the kindle and I cannot wait to get my hands on the hard copy since the illustrations are so beautiful.

I want to add too, that it's a lot easier to read for a book with facts. The way the facts are laid out in little blurbs with real photographs makes it more fun to read.

This was a lovely introduction to a number of important animals on our planet. The book is informative, offering some interesting facts and some quite surprising ones. I thought, perhaps, it was too fact-heavy for this age group, but otherwise a valuable addition to nonfiction books on the animal kingdom.

5 Stars - As the parent of a child who read nothing but animal books growing up, I can honestly say that this is a book you want on your child’s bookshelf. I was initially drawn to this book by the cover and the title, with hopes that it would touch on the subject of conservation and endangered species. Once I started reading I knew that this was going to be a book that I wanted to share with my nieces and nephews.

From the beautiful illustrations by Hannah Bailey to the age-appropriate storytelling of why all animals (from bees, to sharks, bats, tigers, and more) are important, this book is a must read for your child. The story takes place in a classroom as the teacher tells the children that they are going to learn all about animals. It's written with younger preschool children in mind as well as older elementary age children with the inclusion of a glossary and educating the reader about keystone species, ecosystems, and ways that we can help the animals. Websites for conservation organizations are even included at the back of the book.

As for that animal loving son of mine, well he's a Zoology major at college now ... his passion for animals, education and conservation continues to grow. If your child has a love for animals, read them books like this and feed their passion. You never know what they will grow up to be!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. Thank you to NetGalley and North Star Editions, Jolly Fish Press for sending this ARC for my review… and thank you to Penny Worms for writing books like this that educate our children about the importance of wildlife. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

An excellent childrens book that will really suit an inquisitive mind of between 6-12 years of age.

The story is framed around a classroom essentially having show and tells of each important animal that a child in the class has selected. This was a nice way to frame what is essentially a non-fiction book, getting into some fascinating detail on the uniqueness and importance of each animal on display in the book, and why they are important to other animals, and humans as well.

As a children's book illustrator myself, I appreciated the beautiful illustrations, very vibrant, detailed and well researched. I loved how each animal was explored with both diagram type illustrations (the steps of a caterpillar turning into a butterfly for example) and photos of the animals. I don't think that illustrations and photos often combine well in children's books, but here, due to the context of realism and really getting into detail of what makes each animal special, it really works,

I would highly recommend this book to all readers, be you adult or child, there is a lot to enjoy and learn here! What a wonderful world full of wonderful animals we live in!

This book is simply wonderful. I loved how the author Penny Worms made sure to include a variety of animals and factual information about them. This book was illustrated beautifully and had some real life pictures as well. There are also resources for people who want to extend their reading about the animals mentioned. I will recommend this to any parent of children who love animals and have already ordered a copy for my niece and nephew.

A beautiful and important book

The teacher in a classroom decides to focus on different animals and let the children decide which one of them is most important. The children spend time learning about different animals and subsequently telling their fellow pupils about them. Elephants, bees, sharks, beavers, bats, tigers, krill: they all seem important. So how do we make a decision?

This is a lovely, beautifully illustrated book teaching children about different animals and ecosystems. I like the way the story unfolds and enjoyed the glossary at the back. On some pages, the text overlapped with the illustrations, making it hard to read. I hope this can be corrected for the final version. A very valuable book!

This was a great children’s book to teach about how different animals are important in various ways. From elephants, to bees, to even sharks, children can learn fun and interesting facts about how their favorite animals help keep our environment habitable.

My kids and I loved reading it. My only issue was that some of the text is hard to read due to its placement. The information was fascinating and I’m glad my kids could have fun while learning some new things.

The Most Important Animal of All
4.5 Stars

What a fantastic book! This book is packed full of great information.

The Most Important Animal of All takes the reader on a journey to explore what makes each animal different. I liked the layout of the book. I found the text simple, but not overwhelming. I'd like to have seen a bigger font; in some areas it's difficult to read. It's awesome how packed it is, full of illustrations, fun animal facts, and covers a wide range of information. The illustrations are fun, colorful and attention-grabbing. I love the simple lines and added textures that make this picture book come to life.


Overall, this is an excellent book! I think this is a great book for young animal lovers. I'd definitely recommend this book for any personal library/public, a science classroom, or a good resource for an ecosystem/animal project. Thank you, NetGalley and North Star Edition, for an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me review this book. This was a fun read. I like the mix of drawings and photos dispersed throughout the book. The facts were great,with some unusual ones as well. The animals the kids chose were varied as well. I bet most kids have never heard of krill. I like how the kids can find out more about the various animals mentioned by checking out websites. The glossary was good as well.

This book could be described as multi-genre, reminiscent of a Magic School Bus or Magic Treehouse story where a fictional picture book is laden with animal facts. It is beautifully illustrated as well as full of photographs. I loved it!

First, my son loved reading this book like he loved all his stuffed animals.
It's beautifully illustrated with a real picture of animals and insects to show children what they really look like. The little facts about them are just an added bonus for my little one, who loves anything animals. For younger or beginner readers, it might be a little tough to read as there's quite a bit of long text and some overlapping sentences, and they may get a bit overwhelmed. But I'm sure they'll still love looking at the pictures. Now, I'm off to buy a copy for our personal library.

I really enjoyed this book. Even as an adult I learned quite a few things about animals and like that they highlighted some that aren't often spoken about like bats and krill. I also liked the combination of the illustrations with the real photographs.

Some edits are going to be needed before publication. The font doesn't match up with the illustrations in a children's book. There is also a lot of text overlap, which makes it difficult to read. While it was lovely learning about all of the animals, the jump between illustrations and photography is disconcerting.

The Most Important Animal by Penny Worm is beautifully written and full of amazing animal facts. Some of the most incredible animals are highlighted in this book and it’s easy to see how important each animal is to the ecosystem in which they live. The book clearly describes complex scientific concepts (pollination, food chains, echolocation and more) in simple terms for young readers to easily understand. Hannah Bailey’s illustrations are simply gorgeous. The book includes detailed drawings along with actual photos of each important animal. I love that the book invites the readers to vote for the animal that they think is truly the most important animal. I will definitely purchase this book for my own children when it’s published next June.