Diamante, Letizia. Open Wide!: Jaw-Dropping Mouths of the Animal World. Ed J. Brown, Illus. What on Earth!, 09/2024. 64pp. Nonfiction. Trade $21.99. 978-1-80466-136-9. GRADES 3–6. ADDITIONAL.
In this unusual look at the animal kingdom, the focus is on the mouths, including information on teeth and tongues, how different animals eat, and other ways they use their mouths. The content is arranged by the distinctive feature of the mouth, such as tusks, bills, and beaks of birds, and other aspects, and each animal is described in a brief paragraph. The illustrations resemble watercolor pencil with digital coloring and depict the animals in a realistic way. There are special sidebars and diagrams that help convey the information, and the back matter includes source notes, glossary, and index. This is a great item for browsing, but not for researching a homework assignment, because the information on each animal is so brief.
Penny Peck—San José State University iSchool