Ice Is Nice!: All About the North and South Poles »

Bonnie Worth is the author of countless books for young readers, among them the Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library books If I Ran the Rain Forest, A Great Day for Pup, Oh Say Can You Seed? (winner of the 2003 Ohio Farm Bureau Award for Children’s Literature), There’s No Place Like Space!, Wish for a Fish, Oh Say Can You Say Di-no-saur?, and Would You Rather Be a Pollywog?

What purrrfect timing! Fall 2010 marks the launch of the new PBS Kids television show The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!—an animated preschool science program based on the Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library book series—and to celebrate, we’re coating the cover of our new Learning Library book Ice Is Nice! with a shimmery finish! In this latest installment of the bestselling series, the Cat in the Hat takes Sally and Dick to visit the North and South Poles, where they mingle with native animals—reindeer, musk oxen, polar bears, caribou, and all sorts of penguins. They discover how the animals stay warm in the freezing cold, learn why it’s colder at the South Pole than at the North Pole, find out that one pole is located on land and the other isn’t, and learn that scientists are studying climate change to keep both poles icy cold.

This is the perfect book to curl up with on a cold winter’s day—made even more perfect with a glistening cover!

Children's Literature

With the familiar Cat in the Hat and Seuss-like rhymes, early readers can learn facts about the North and South Poles. The inviting cover sparkles like ice. Although the text states that the North Pole has no land under it, the illustration of summer seems to show some, and the accompanying text reads: "Berries and mosses and all kinds of flowers, when temperatures rise, are sprouting in hours." The reason for seasonal change is explained as: "Earth spins on its axis while circling the sun. It takes a full year till this orbit is done." Additional facts are provided throughout the book, including that native people today live in houses, have color TVs, and use snowmobiles. Animals keep warm with blubber, feathers and special fur, such as the polar bear's hollow fur hairs. At the South Pole, the temperature can sink to 130 degrees below zero. Various kinds of penguins eat krill and raise chicks by huddling together for warmth. Scientists study the animals, climate change, and more in these hostile regions. A glossary, a reading list, and an index are included. This is part of "The Cat in the Hat's Learning Library" series. Kids will enjoy the rhymes while learning some facts about the poles. Reviewer: Carlee Hallman