Build, Beaver, Build!: Life at the Longest Beaver Dam

"One June night, a 'softball-sized' beaver kit is swimming across the pond to his mother when an owl swoops down toward him. The three-week-old kit dives, paddling underwater into the entrance tunnel to his family's lodge. As he and his sisters grow up, they learn to gather sticks, repair the lodge and dam, defend themselves against predators, and add to the family's winter food supply, stored near the lodge entrances. The following spring, they become 'babysitters in training' as well as dam builders, preparing them to raise their own families someday. A nip from a Canada goose and a narrow escape from a coyote add additional drama to the young beaver's story, but the information in Markle's simply written text is pretty engaging in itself. Nicely composed, the lively illustrations include many night scenes. One very effective picture shows a cross-section of the beaver lodge, its upper part covered with snow and its lower part submerged in water, with the kit emerging from the tunnel into the pond. A satisfying picture book for junior naturalists."--Booklist Online

"An exciting introduction to these semiaquatic animals. Readers follow a young beaver kit over the course of a year as he and his family find food, ward off predators, and continue to build their dam and lodge. Short paragraphs lend themselves to being read aloud, and the narrative will hold kids' attention. However, the details and vocabulary found in other animal texts are lacking here; report writers will need to look elsewhere for general facts. Hocking's intricate and beautiful full-spread watercolors greatly enhance the text. VERDICT: A solid supplemental purchase."--School Library Journal