Book cover of Grandmother Fish: A Child's First Book of Evolution

Book description

It's a simple question, but not so simple an answer to explain especially to young children. Charles Darwin's theory of common descent no longer needs to be a scientific mystery to inquisitive young readers. Meet Grandmother Fish. Told in an engaging call and response text where a child can wiggle…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked Grandmother Fish as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This is the best book to take a first look at evolution and creatures from long, long, long, long ago. Can you chomp? Grandmother Fish could. Can you crawl? Grandmother Reptile could. Who had a jaw, who could squeak, who cuddled with babies, who could climb? Wow! Can you do those things and talk too? With beautiful illustrations and simple wording, wonderful connections are made to show how all life is related. Thoughtful back material helps to explain natural selection and other concepts for those readers who will ask more questions.  

I loved reading this beautiful book for young children to my daughter when she was younger, as it puts the story of evolution into context for early learners, following a “family tree” style of explanation. Children are invited to wiggle like a fish, crawl like a lizard, squeak like a mammal, grab like an ape and walk like a human as they travel forward in time from the deep past to the present. Traits accumulate through generations and the relationships between different animals are shown on the page. The bright and cheerful illustrations bring the story to life. This is…

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