10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful and educational, 22 Mar 2001
By A. KAPLAN "Penelopecat" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Little Panda: The World Welcomes Hua Mei at the San Diego Zoo (Hardcover)
I'll be perfectly honest: I love following Hua Mei's story at the San Diego Zoo web site. I'm a complete sucker for panda stories. So I was pleased to finally see a more permanent record of Hua Mei's first year.
While I bought this book for the photographs (which are plentiful, large, and beautiful), this book should also appeal to children and parents because of its text (or perhaps I should say "texts"). The author has written two parallel texts: one fairly simple and straightforward for younger readers, printed in large type, and a slightly more complex one in smaller type, giving more detailed information about pandas. By creating a book that appeals to more than one reading level, Ms. Ryder has given us a book that parents will be able to share with their young children as they grow older and learn to read.
Make no mistake; this is not a detailed textbook about pandas. If that's what you're looking for, I recommend George Schaller's LAST PANDA (also available from Amazon.com, coincidentally enough). But this is a good introduction for young children, who may be able to indentify with the young Hua Mei. For older panda lovers, this is an excellent collection of photographs. The only thing that keeps me from giving this book five stars (besides the fact that I never give anything five stars) is that I can never get enough information about Hua Mei.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you didn't love Pandas before this book, you will now!, 15 July 2005
By KSL "emma-and-me" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Little Panda: The World Welcomes Hua Mei at the San Diego Zoo (Paperback)
The photos in this book are absolutely amazing! Starting with Hua Mei's 1st teeny tiny black & white photo camera that had been installed inside the panda den, and the book ending 1 year later. I can't say enough about the photos!
This is the 1st year in the life of Hua Mei and is pronounced Hwa May. In China, one name can mean different thing and Hua Mei's means Splended Beauty AND China-USA. The birth of Hua Mei in 1999 in the San Diego Zoo connects both China, the country where pandas roam and here in the Us where she lives.
This is one of those books that grows with it's young reader! The author Joanne Ryder lots of information on each page. There is a big bold font that tells the story and then a smaller not so small font that gives additional information! I just can not say enought wonderful words about this book! A definate book to have in your home library!
5.0 out of 5 stars
Panda baby, 8 July 2007
By Isobel E. Houpt - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Little Panda: The World Welcomes Hua Mei at the San Diego Zoo (Paperback)
This book with its beautiful real-life illustrations would be a great one to give a child as a gift. It would acquaint him or her with the life process of a baby panda's first year. The words and sentences are short and readable for a child in the early grades. It would also be a good read-aloud book for someone with a small child who loves to be read to. I highly recommend it.