Neighborhood Sharks by Katherine Roy

Vividly illustrated, Neighborhood Sharks brings readers up close and personal with one of nature’s most fearsome apex predators.

Neighborhood Sharks: Hunting with the Great Whites of California’s Farallon Islands by Katherine Roy. David Macaulay Studio, 2014. 48 pages.

• Reading Level: Picture books, ages 8-12
• Recommended For: Ages 8 and up

Most of us don’t consider sharks “neighborly,” but Neighborhood Sharks is not about that kind of neighbor. Rather, Katherine Roy zeroes in on a particularly “neighborhood,” or area, where Great Whites hunt for a season every year: the Farallon Islands off the coast of California.

Using this lens through which to look at Great Whites, Roy provides stunning information about the amazing bodies of these animals. Most children haven’t seen Jaws, but the topic of “sharks” is one of the hottest topics in elementary school libraries across the country. Instinctively, perhaps, children recognize that these creatures are one of nature’s most fearsome apex predators.

Neighborhood Sharks takes readers on a hunting expedition with the shark, pulling out from the story to examine key features of a shark’s anatomy that contribute to its intense hunting ability. Did you know that a Great White’s teeth are pointed in different directions? That they have binocular forward vision (much like us) and can project their jaws forward, slightly out of their heads?!

Roy maintains a journalistic tone throughout the book, respectful of the sharks but not too cuddly. This helps readers recognize that the shark must eat, and that the elephant seal is its perfect meal. But Roy’s scientific illustrations do not gloss over the blood and gore. Details are fuzzy where appropriate, and the red blends in with the illustration (much like that cover illustration). Still, sensitive animal-loving readers may wish to wait a bit before diving in with the Great Whites and hunting alongside them. All in all, this is a tremendous tribute to one of the God’s most interesting marine animals and the intricate design they reveal.

Considerations:

• Evolution/Age of the Earth: One page describes millions of years, but no mention of evolution or adaptation is mentioned. Rather, this is in the context of whether sharks can survive another set number of years with humans, implying that humans can have a distinct impact on the sharks’ ecosystem. This is true! And the book does not offer any “warnings” other than that.

Bottom Line: Neighborhood Sharks is an excellent nonfiction resource, practically a must for an elementary school library or a public library.

*indicates a starred review.

Recommended Reading at Redeemed Reader

• Book Review: How to Be An Elephant by Katherine Roy (scroll to the bottom for this book)
• Resource: Beach Books is a list of books all about beach-related topics (although we hope you don’t meet a shark at the beach!)
• Book Review: Behold the Octopus! By Suzanne Slade: another picture book about a fascinating marine creature

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