Octopus Ocean

January 1, 2025
Grades 4-7 Thanks to My Octopus Teacher and other media, octopuses are having a moment; and thanks to this title in the Orca Wild series, middle-grade readers can understand what makes this strange animal so fascinating. Short topical chapters in accessible text, with occasional personal interjections from the author, cover octopus basics and more. The first half of the book focuses on the animal's unusual anatomy, from its three hearts and eight tentacles (with suckers that taste by touch) to its blue blood and unique brain, as well as the octopus' ancient ancestor vampyropod (which looked more like a 10-armed squid) and how octopuses reproduce. The second half, in turn, considers the octopus through different lenses, with chapters that describe octopuses in folklore, octopus celebrities, examples of particularly amazing octopuses, the octopus-human relationship and its impact (such as eating, farming, and experimenting on octopuses), and conservation. While sidebar "Ink Spots" add even more details, the numerous color photos of different octopus species from around the world are the real attention-grabbers in this inviting and informational book.

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January 15, 2025
All hail the weirdly alien cephalopods: dreamers, unsurpassed escape artists, and among the smartest creatures on the planet. Noting that even as he was writing this book, researchers were continuing to make new discoveries about octopuses and their squid and cuttlefish cousins, Leiren-Young nonetheless forges ahead to introduce representative members of the cephalopod clan and to explore their distinctive qualities and capabilities. In addition to celebrating their vaunted ability to camouflage themselves and to escape from captivity (one Auckland overachiever, dubbed Rambo, even learned how to use a waterproof camera), he points to evidence that they are at least as smart as chimps and dolphins, that they may dream, and that, with fantastically sensitive sensors in their arms, they can tell if what they touch is "friend, foe or food" and even detect light and color. The author attempts to remain nonjudgmental about the consumption of octopuses; after all, he writes, "any animal thatcan eat an octopus will," including other octopuses. Still, he emphasizes the controversy around farming them, and to counter anthropodenial (the assumption that animals don't have emotions or intelligence), he urges readers to use gendered pronouns when thinking about them. From the giant Pacific octopus and a "squid squad" to a fingertip-size wolfi and the "adorable" dumbo, specimens undulate fetchingly across natural settings in the heavy suite of stock photos. An unusually lively meet and greet--stimulating and informative. (glossary, resource lists, index)(Nonfiction. 9-12)

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April 1, 2025

Gr 5-8-Each of these engaging and informative books opens with the author describing a personal interaction with the featured animal. Subsequent chapters provide thorough and accessible profiles, covering physical features, behaviors, evolution, history, and endangered status. The writing style is conversational at times, but also filled with fascinating scientific information. The authors' enthusiasm for their subjects comes through clearly. Biological data is balanced neatly with personal stories of scientists and short portraits of individual animals like Sid, the octopus escape artist, and Koko the gorilla. Current scientific discoveries as recent as 2024 are noted. Visual content includes many well-chosen photographs, along with drawings and useful diagrams. Closing chapters highlight current threats to the creatures, along with suggested ways that people can help. VERDICT First-rate animal nonfiction for middle school readers.

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