This massive encyclopedia of extinct animals gives many details on each two-page spread. The text is informal and welcoming for children. It is a great addition to libraries, especially with students/patrons interested in extinction.

The book is also beautifully illustrated.

Thank you to Net Galley, HarperCollins Children's Books, and Quill Tree Books for the eARC!

Why We Went Extinct is the perfect balance of cute and informative. My son is five and some of this is a bit over his head (I would say it's better suited for 2-5th graders, depending on reading level and interest) but he is still super engaged and asks to read more. The authors were very clever in their delivery of the subject matter and have each extinct animal talk to the reader of the book which makes it feel conversational and engaging. I haven't heard of most of these animals so it's fun to discover them along with my son. Parts are even laugh-out-loud funny at the reasons they went extinct and the things they say. I think any budding scientist would love this one and I'd highly recommend for a science class too -- even secondary kiddos would find this an engaging way to start discussing extinction. I also really appreciated how the book discusses the importance of evolution, that without it new creatures wouldn't exist today. This would make a great gift for any kid who loves science or dinosaurs (though it goes far beyond dinosaurs, dino lovers will be familiar with the concept of extinction) especially with science museum tickets. I also highly recommend it for any classroom, school, or public library. Great read!

The illustrations in this book are great! Now, the content. Each section has one section of first person (animal talking about themselves), then a small section with more in depth information, as well as a table with general information (time of extinction, size, area, food, and type). I think the content is okay, it lends itself more to upper elementary or middle school level. One thing I wish was a bit more seamless was the organization, it jumps from different eras instead of it being sequential. I know there are different sections based on why they became extinct, but again, the jumping around of eras and time periods.

Overall, a nice book. I might not purchase it for a MS/HS library, but would suggest it to the elementary library.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for this ARC.