The Lodge That Beaver Built by Randi Sonenshine, Anne Hunter
Published by Candlewick Press on September 27, 2022
ISBN: 1536218685
Pages: 32
Genres: Animals
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads

In “The Lodge That Beaver Built”, Sorenshine tells the story of Beaver, building his lodge to the lilting rhythm of “The House That Jack Built”. Along the way we meet the other denizens of the marshland and learn their relationship to the environment. It is brief but informative with the help of ink and colored-pencil illustrations that simply but accurately show what the text tells. For younger readers, this book will make them more curious about the fascinating lives of beavers. The back matter contains Beaver Facts, a glossary, and recommends online resources (websites and videos). It is too simple to support research (although the back matter helps) but it does an excellent job explaining the engineering of a lodge in a marsh. For early elementary classrooms researching Maine animals, this is a great read-aloud. You could also hand it to a naturalist who will love the way the illustrations and text work together.

Reviewed by Deanna Contrino, Young School Library, Saco