Creature Files: Sharks

I love sharks so much and it was great to get to read this! I loved how there was a 2 page spread for each breed and it can be used to show the varieties of shark and the danger levels. This is one book is get for myself!

This review was originally published on my website: <a href="https://www.missjennysclassroom.com/2018/02/creature-files-sharks-book-review.html">Miss Jenny's Classroom</a>

The facts and nothing but the facts. Each 2-page spread concentrates on one particular breed of shark. For each shark the facts include size, weight, location, as well as a fact specific to the sharks' bite (such as their teeth).

This book gets the balance correct in terms of formatting. In the classroom this would be a great book to use to study facts about sharks and have students complete research about their favourite one from the book (or for older students, one that isn't in the book). I can definitely see this book appealing to boys in particular because of the easy to understand information and the rather nifty and cool facts about the bites. Also, the simplicity of the layout also means this is an ideal book to be using with ESL/ELL as it is accessible to them for at least understanding the basics even if they're still developing their English-language skills.

If you know a young shark lover, this book is the perfect gift! I love the layout--2 page spreads with infographics, including a map of where the specific shark lives in the world. I had no idea there were so many types of sharks, and the close-up pictures of their teeth are amazing (and slightly terrifying if you ever find yourself in oceans!). This book would work perfectly as part of a class library from grade 4 to 6, and probably outside those limits depending on interest and reading level. The pictures alone appeal even if the text is higher than a younger elementary student's reading level. I highly recommend. This is a very well put together book.

I  recieved a free digital copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest review.

What fascinating creatures sharks are. I never knew there were so many different varieties of shark that I had never heard of before. Seriously. Did you know there was a Cookie Cutter Shark and that it glows in the dark?

There are facts about size, weight and teeth. I have to tell you, some of those teeth are terrifying. I loved all of the tidbits and fun facts on each of the different breeds. I think my nephew will love this book!

🦈 SHARK!!! 🦈

I’ve been fascinated by sharks ever since I first watched Jaws when I was too young to know he couldn’t come through the shower head in pieces, magically reform and attack me while I showered (true story! 🤪), so naturally this is my type of non-fiction kid’s book. There’s enough information to maintain your interest but not so much that you get bored or succumb to information overload.

It’s the sort of book I would have used for school projects in primary school and would have enjoyed reading it just for fun as well. Besides all of the cool shark facts there are plenty of quality photographs of the various sharks and the layout is eye catching. While there’s plenty to look at on each page it doesn’t look overly cluttered.

Of the over 400 types of shark, Creature Files: Sharks provides information and photographs of twenty. I personally learned a lot while reading this book and the facts below are only a snippet of what you’ll discover.

🦈 Great White Shark - My mate Bruce from Jaws is probably the most famous Great White. These sharks can have up to 300 teeth!

🦈 Bull Shark - These are the sharks most likely to attack people and have been found with strange objects in their stomachs including licence plates!

🦈 Mako Shark - The Fastest Shark award 🏆 goes to the Mako.

🦈 Sand Tiger Shark - A sand tiger shark in a New York aquarium lived more than twice as long as the average wild sand tiger shark.

🦈 Nurse Shark - Nurse sharks live at the bottom of the ocean.

🦈 Cookiecutter Shark - The bellies of these sharks glow in the dark.

🦈 Tiger Shark - Tiger Sharks have the nickname “garbage can of the sea”.

🦈 Greenland Shark - The Slowest Shark award 🏆 goes to the Greenland Shark.

🦈 Spiny Dogfish - These sharks have been overfished and are in danger of extinction.

🦈 Lemon Shark - Their eyesight is poor so they need to rely on other senses to find food.

🦈 Sawshark - Their prey include shrimp, worms and shellfish.

🦈 Basking Shark - They form groups (schools) that can range from a couple up to 100 sharks, unlike most other sharks who are loners.

🦈 Frilled Shark - Rarely seen alive by humans, Frilled Sharks live at the bottom of the ocean.

🦈 Blue Shark - World travellers, these sharks swim about 1000 miles (1609 kilometres) each year.

🦈 Wobbegong Shark - They have flat bodies and are a type of carpet shark.

🦈 Leopard Shark - Groups of leopard sharks are social and are known to hang out with other types of sharks.

🦈 Great Hammerhead Shark - Their favourite food are stingrays but will also eat sharks, including other hammerheads.

🦈 Goblin Shark - Only 50 Goblin Sharks have been seen since they were first discovered in the late 1800’s.

🦈 Megamouth Shark - Megamouths are filter-feeders.

🦈 Whale Shark - The Largest Fish in the Sea award 🏆 goes to the Whale Shark.

Each shark file provides ‘fast facts’ which include the length of the shark and a picture showing the size comparison of that shark and a person (in feet and metres), how much the shark weighs (in pounds and kilograms) and a world map highlighting where it lives. I love that each shark file contains a Shark Bite that explains what that type of shark eats, what its teeth look like and for the majority of sharks an accompanying close up photo of its smile.

Included with the book are three replica teeth that kids can identify using their new knowledge and they can make a shark tooth necklace with the cord that’s also included. I would’ve loved wearing that necklace as a kid.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group - becker&mayer! kids for the opportunity to read this book.

Did you know there's a shark nicknamed the Garbage Can of the Sea? And how about all the different shapes of shark teeth! I have had preschool students who loved (intensely studied) sharks and having the answers to trivia questions will intrigue learners of all ages! The text features are fabulous for young learners, including a table of contents, photographs, and the "fast facts" section with maps and shark size comparisons on each page - additionally, the consistency from page to page reinforces to young readers that this book is nonfiction. I have to come back to the photographs of close-ups of shark mouths and teeth - wow. I thought I knew many shark facts but I feel like I can fully converse with a school-age "sharks-pert" after having finished this book. Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to preview #CreatureFilesSharks by LJ Tracosas - I already have several children in mind who would love reading this book.

This excellent non-fiction book is part of a series that I am positive kids will throughly enjoy. It is packed full of detailed photos and shark profiles that will bring this extraordinary species to life right before your eyes.

The book showcases twenty types of sharks and elaborates on their physical bodies, eating habits, and where they are located in our world. An extra bonus is the "Shark Bite File" that explains more detailed information that kids would love to know. The photos are graphic and awe-inspiring, bordering on breathtaking! Some of the sharks documented are familiar and some will be foreign but all in all after reading the book you will understand why these specific sharks have been featured. They are powerful, magnanimous creatures of the ocean.

Each two-page spread focuses on one particular breed of shark. The illustrations are bright, colourful and very eye-catching. The almost make the text animated. The layout of the book is very effective and engaging for young readers. They will marvel at these creatures and go back time and time again to read about them.

This book would be a wonderful addition to a classroom or school library. I think boys especially would be drawn in by the subject matter and the cool layout with the vibrant colours and fun fact bites. I highly recommend this book, and in fact, the whole series.

Special thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy to review.

If your child has an interest in Sharks, then you must get this book! We absolutely LOVED this one! As we read through the different (and some new) sharks, we got quite a bit of information! My boys love marine biology, so this book was heaven-send on a cold afternoon.

Full of facts, fun, and smiles - this book is perfect for kids of all ages! Grab this book now, and get ready for lots of questions from your kiddos - in retrospect - read the book first, you can wow your kids with all your impressive shark knowledge!

Excellently organized and entertaining. A real winner for the publisher and the reader.

This book about Sharks is all about the different kinds of sharks in the ocean. There are more than 400 species out there but this book focuses on 20 of them. Different types of sharks can range in size from 6 inches to 40 feet!! Each chapter focuses on a different species and lets you know a few fast facts about them - like their length and weight and where in the world they are most commonly found. Then there is another fact about their teeth under the "Shark Bite Files". I could probably have done without seeing so many creepy shark teeth throughout this book, but it was really interesting to see all the different types of sharks and what they look like.

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review, I was not otherwise compensated.

Great children's book on sharks. I especially liked the quick facts section on each shark, along with close-ups of the different teeth. The last page shows a picture of how deep each of the sharks live. Highly recommended for all the little shark lovers out there!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book, which I voluntarily chose to review.

Right off we start with close-ups of the different kinds of teeth sharks can have, as well as the fact that when one falls off there’s always another in line waiting to take its place. Can’t help but picture the mechanism of a vending machine. . .
There’s a brief chapter of just about every shark imaginable, including the cookiecutter; and you thought the hammerhead and its buddy the saw were weirdos. And don’t even try to figure out the frilled. The wobbegong took a wrong turn on the evolutionary road; makes the goblin shark look like a tuna in comparison. But hey, Megamouth made the list!
Each page gives length, weight, and location, as well as a close-up terrifying photo.
3.5 pushed up to 4/5

I love, love, love this book! Both my own kids and many of my students will read this avidly. I thought that I knew a lot about sharks, but I still learned a few things. The shark summaries should draw in reluctant readers as well as nature lovers.

Creature Files: Sharks by LJ Tracosas give a peek at some of the oldest and most fascinating creatures in earth. Practically unchanged since the time of the great saurians, these predators of the deep will likely continue on long after humanity is gone. Twenty different sharks are discussed, from the fearsome great white, to the terrifying goblin shark, and the large-mouthed basking shark. The very first section takes a look at shark teeth, the forms they can take, and the uses they have. It's quite fascinating that they near constantly grow and shed teeth. I have a collection of teeth my grandmother and I gathered on beach trips long ago, and the pride of my fossil collection is a megalodon tooth.

Each of the animal 'snapshots’ has a picture of the shark, and a close-up of its teeth, and gives the distribution/range, size, and weight, as well as a handful of interesting facts. For instance…

It is the bull shark that accounts for most attacks on humans.
Greenland sharks are the only known arctic species, and are the slowest species.
Leopard sharks school, and will mingle with other shark species.
Whale sharks are both the largest shark species, and the largest species of ocean dwelling fish.
My cubs and I really enjoyed reading this book. We even discovered a shark we'd never heard of- the utterly frightening cookie cutter shark. And the pictures! Absolutely stunning! The wobbegong shark was our favourite. They are pretty neat looking, and the name is just fun to say. Perfect for the nature long child, and anyone who loves sharks.

***Many thanks to Netgalley and Quarto Publishing for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.