The Wonder in Water

Swanson, Diane. The Wonder in Water. Toronto: Annick Press, 2005.

This book focuses on water in many of its different forms, providing some basic facts about the important role it plays both in human life and in the surrounding environment, and then exploring some of the more extraordinary facts and phenomena related to water. Because the subject is broken into discrete topics (like sweat, puddles, rain, and marshes) the book doesn’t do a great job of talking about the water cycle itself although the connections are mentioned in passing within the text of each section. These mini-chapters also don’t always focus on the topic named: The “sweat” section, for instance, acts more as an introduction with general facts about the importance of water to human survival and the amount of water in the polar ice caps. The strength of the book is in the outrageous and fascinating facts described, such as the turtle that once fell inside a giant hail ball or the phenomenon of rain-delivered slime mold that can move across fields or up telephone poles. The photographs are appealing and informative, the design is attractive and contemporary looking, the tone of the text is conversational and accessible, but the overall organization doesn't appear conducive to an overall understanding of the topic. Where this book shines is its ability to invoke wonder at the natural world. There are no sources for the information which, considering the extraordinary nature of the facts, is a little disapointing but probably not uncommon for books aimed at such a young audience.

** out of 4

Looking at other reviews:

Hazel Rochman's review (Booklist via Amazon.com) seems more positive than mine, but does also focus on the extraordinary facts as the main strength of the book. She also highlights the "chatty" tone of the narrative as a positive feature, especially for read-alouds, whereas I found the tone conversational but a little condescending or overdone in places.

Elaine Fuhr's review for CM was even more positive (giving the book 3 1/2 stars out of four), but she focuses on the same sense of wonder and the "wow" factor produced by this extraordinary collection of facts.