Humanimal: Incredible Ways Animals Are Just Like Us!

by Christopher Lloyd, Mark Ruffle (Illustrator)

Overview

So you think you’re special? Just because people have built cities, invented pop-up toasters and put people on the Moon that they are somehow different from (or better than) other living things? Well it’s time to think again! Humanimal explores the interconnections of the human and natural worlds in ways you never before imagined...

Inside you will discover how: 

• Slime molds learn how to navigate through a maze
• Rats are ticklish and how it makes them laugh out loud
• Elephants have funerals for their lost loved ones
• Bees vote in elections to decide where to locate their nests
• Crows use cars to crack nuts
• And a whole lot more!

This richly illustrated, mesmerizing exploration shows that humans and other animals don’t just live on the same planet, they also share many of the same patterns of behavior, making us all fellow players in the drama that is life on Earth. Fascinating and stunningly illustrated, Humanimal explores and celebrates the astonishing ways in which animals and humans are alike.

Written by Christopher Lloyd, the bestselling author of Absolutely Everything!, and illustrated by the superbly talented Mark Ruffle. Including a colorful jacket with a wonderful animal surprise underneath, this book will astound and amaze children aged 7–11, along with their family and friends, too!

Includes a glossary and index.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781912920013
Publisher:	What on Earth Publishing
Publication date:	11/05/2019
Pages:	48
Product dimensions:	10.30(w) x 11.10(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	1070L (what's this?)
Age Range:	7 - 12 Years

About the Author

Bestselling author Christopher Lloyd began his career as a journalist with The Sunday Times newspaper. Then, while camping with his family, he had a critical realisation: even with a 1st class degree in history from Cambridge Universityand experience as a science writer, there was so much about the world he didn’t know. So, he set out to write books that zoom out and tell the big stories, opening readers’ eyes to how seemingly unrelated events fit together and showing them multiple perspectives on the world, all in highly engaging prose and matched with lively illustration and photography. Now, with several books in print, including the bestselling What on Earth Happened? and Absolutely Everything, Chris divides his time between writing books and delivering lectures and workshops to schools, literary festivals, and a wide range of other venues around the world. He lives in Tonbridge, Kent, UK, with his wife and two adorable terriers.

Mark Ruffle studied graphic design and then worked as an art editor for Oxford UniversityPress, before becoming a freelance illustrator and designer. When he’s not drawing animals or spaceships, among other things, he enjoys walking his dogs and cycling in the Cotswolds, where he lives with his wife and two daughters.

Editorial Reviews

"Eye-opening discoveries for readers who think only humans grieve, play, or admire themselves in mirrors." —Kirkus Reviews

"A fun and thought-provoking look at animals that are just like us. An excellent choice for any nonfiction collection." — Savannah Kitchens, Parnell Memorial Library, School Library Journal

"This is an informative book filled with amazing facts that show many of the traits that we feel make us uniquely human are actually shared by a variety of creatures ... This is a wonderful book that celebrates the living world and raises awareness of our interconnectedness to other species ... The illustrations, in a bold graphic style, perfectly compliment the text." —Youth Services Book Review

"Illustrations are detailed and engaging. Text is informative enough for research and readable. Comparisons between human and animal behavior are drawn well, leading readers to exciting conclusions about our relationship with the animal world. An excellent glossary, a long index, and a detailed list of sources make this a fantastic resource, but the segment on the many scientists who contributed to the research really put this title over the top. VERDICT: A fun and thought-provoking look at animals that are just like us. An excellent choice for any nonfiction collection." —School Library Journal

"Based on decades of experts’ research and scientific observation, Christopher Lloyd … invites readers to cultivate respect and empathy for the Earth’s other living creatures by enumerating their relatable similarities to humans … Mark Ruffle’s gorgeous illustrations and rich color palette capture images of all manner of flora and fauna." —Parents’ Choice Gold Award Winner

From the Publisher

★ 11/01/2019

Gr 2–6—Most readers know that bees can communicate with one another and that elephants have graveyards, but Lloyd's exploration of animals goes further, with details about farming fish and playful ravens. For each topic (community, feelings, intelligence), the author offers examples of animals that engage in behavior similar to humans' and describes the scientists who made these discoveries. Illustrations are detailed and engaging. Text is informative enough for research and readable. Comparisons between human and animal behavior are drawn well, leading readers to exciting conclusions about our relationship with the animal world. An excellent glossary, a long index, and a detailed list of sources make this a fantastic resource, but the segment on the many scientists who contributed to the research really put this title over the top. VERDICT A fun and thought-provoking look at animals that are just like us. An excellent choice for any nonfiction collection.—Savannah Kitchens, Parnell Memorial Library, Montevallo, AL

School Library Journal

2019-08-26
Eye-opening discoveries for readers who think only humans grieve, play, or admire themselves in mirrors.

Claiming the titular word (wrongly) as his own coinage, Lloyd develops the theme that many animals display behavior or characteristics once thought exclusively human, from living in cities (termites) to feeling emotions like love and grief (elephants, bonobos). The author extends commonly seen examples: Yes, as Jane Goodall has proven, chimps do use tools, but so do Australian black kites, which have been seen carrying burning sticks from fires to nearby grasslands to stir up prey. He also points to observations of bees communally deciding on where to establish a new hive; ravens repeatedly rolling down hills for, evidently, fun; and even slime molds showing a knack for constructing networks between food sources that rival for efficiency anything that civil engineers can concoct. In many reports he names animal researchers (though all but two of the 15 in his closing biographical gallery are white and European or American) and describes specific incidents or experiments. Ruffle adds big, boldly hued views of stylized but expressively posed, easily recognizable creatures against monochromatic or simplified natural backgrounds. The rare human figures are nearly all actual portraits.

Convincing evidence that the boundaries between us and them aren't all that sharp. (index, selected scientific publications) (Informational picture book. 7-10)

Kirkus Reviews