Between Cattails

Grade 1-3 The mixture of factual information and poetic writing will severely limit the audience for this beautiful book. Parnall's vivid drawings, primarily in blues, yellows and greens, complement the lyrical text of this glimpse at a typical marsh habitat, an environment that supports a rich variety of plant and animal life. Williams briefly depicts some of the daily activities of herons, weasels, muskrats, grebes and several kinds of ducks. Short descriptions of their food supply and of the major plants that make up this type of wetland are also given. The audience for this book is hard to determine. It is a picture book, but often the vocabulary and poetic expressions seem designed for older children. However, the factual information it does contain is too general for students researching marshes. None of the illustrations are labeled, a shortcoming in the section that shows several plant species clumped together. No index or glossary of terms is included. Parents and teachers who want to instill a love of nature in children will probably find this book of value, although its message of conservation ("To save these stories we must treat the marsh gently") is more clearly expressed in other books, notably Baylor's The Desert Is Theirs (Scribners , 1975 ) , which is a simpler poetic interpretation of the balance of nature set in the desert (and which was also illustrated by Parnall). Karen Wehner, San Francisco Public Library
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