Publisher blurb: Everyone recognises the puffin, with its black and white feathers and brightly colored bill. But how does the puffin live? What happens down in its burrow? And how do the male and female share the task of feeding and caring for their young? Discover the intriguing world of this charming bird in a collaboration that pairs Martin Jenkins’s engaging, informative text with the warm energy of Jenni Desmond’s illustrations. Filled with interesting facts, this delightful introduction to the puffin offers young ornithologists more details in the back matter.
This book is from the Nature Storybook series (previously called Read and Wonder) from Walker Books. Some are produced here in Australia, while others, like this one from the UK. This book was a gift for my birthday last week - an utterly perfect present for a huge puffin fan like me!
My journey into the world of puffins began with Puffling. I actually thought puffins were 'made-up'. Of course I knew the famous book company Puffin Books (part of Penguin). Once I discovered puffins were real I set about investigating a way to see them. In 2015 I travelled to Orkney, Shetland and Fair Isle and YES because I went at the right time of year (May) I saw so many puffins and I was able to take hundreds of photos too.
Here are a few puffin facts:
- There are three kinds of puffins - Crested Puffin; Horned Puffin and Atlantic Puffin
- You can find puffins in the northern hemisphere - Greenland; Newfoundland; the northern coasts of Europe and even as far south as Maine in the US.
- Puffins show affection by rubbing their beaks together - this is called beaking
- Their favourite food is sand eels
- A baby puffin is called a puffling
- Puffins spend most of their lives out at sea
- Their beak changes from grey to bright orange in Spring
- If you feel like a laugh listen to some puffins (this used to make my students roar with laughter)
About the author: Martin Jenkins was born in Surrey in 1959 but grew up in Spain, Ireland and Kent. Martin became involved with children’s books when he was asked to advise on Walker Books’ Animals at Risk series. Since then he has written several titles, including Emperor's Egg, winner of the Times Junior Information Book of the Year Award and Fly Traps! Plants that Bite Back, which was shortlisted for the same award. He has also retold Gulliver's Travels, winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal and Don Quixote.
About the illustrator: Jenni Desmond is a picture book maker based in Hackney, London UK. In 2016 she was made a Maurice Sendak Fellow and her book The Polar Bear won a prestigious New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Books award. Her books have been translated into over 20 languages. She has a passion for books and believes that picture books are essential for nurturing young imaginations. Jenni does not think picture books should be limited to children, and hopes her own books will also appeal to older people with youthful minds. Jenni works by hand using mixed media and finishes her artwork digitally.
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