This is a fun one for word lovers, as you learn a lot of interesting words for groups of animals, but it also teaches about how animals use teamwork to survive. Lovely art.

Informational; Nonfiction; Primary; Intermediate; This book is a great one for students interested in animals. It highlights different animals and talks about what their groups are called and what they achieve. It would be a great read aloud book or independent reading book for intermediate students. ( )

Age: primary
Genre: nonfiction / informational

This book was very cute and informational about different types of animals and how they work together in packs. This book has a balanced amount of information to do a read aloud with. It also encourages students that they are better together. This can encourage unity in the class as well. ( )

Primary read-aloud, intermediate independent. This book talks about different groups of animals and what they are called, and a little bit about them. This would be a good read-aloud and a good introduction to some animals, which could peak some students' interest.

Full disclosure: I am personal friends with the wonderfully talented Hannah Salyer, an artist and first-time picture-book author who makes her debut with this forthcoming title.

Opening with a number of two-page spreads dedicated to animal groups - a pack of wolves, a herd of bison, a huddle of penguins, a pod of dolphins - the narrative here then expands, beginning to explore how animal groups works together for the benefit of the entire community. A nest of ants harvest together, a cloud of bats speak together, a swarm of bees work together, a colony of coral builds together. As the narrative concludes, "all together... we are better..."

A gorgeous book, one which pairs a thoughtful exploration of groups dynamics in the animal world with stunningly beautiful artwork, Packs: Strength in Numbers is an amazingly assured debut for Salyer. Having recently read Carin Berger's A Curious Menagerie, which I also enjoyed, and which explores collective nouns for animals, I was appreciative of the way in which the author here delves deeper, presenting not just the idea of animal groups, but the utility and beauty of their activities. As much as I enjoyed the narrative however, and as much as I appreciated the thoughtful afterword, which includes a list of further reading, it is Salyer's artwork that is the true star of this book. Both detailed in its execution - the hatching, in the depiction of the wolves; the miniature ants in the background of the page devoted to their nest - and majestic in its totality - the gorgeous color schemes, the sweeping sense of motion - the illustrations dazzle. This is a book one will want to pore over, enjoying the beauty of its visuals, and pondering the wonder of the natural world it evokes. I'm happy to think that this is just the beginning of Hannah Salyer's career, and look forward to the creation of many more wonderful books! ( )