Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 04/15/2021 An egotistical great white shark introduces himself as the greatest and then is contradicted by all the other sharks. Whale Shark asserts he is the biggest; Dwarf Lantern Shark, the smallest; Hammerhead professes to be the smartest; Angel Shark startles everyone as the sneakiest; Tiger Shark declares himself the best hunter; Greenland Shark, the oldest; and Mako Shark demonstrates he's the fastest. After perusing some shark facts, Great White decides to promote his toothy grin as his best feature. Holub's narrative, delivered almost entirely in first-person dialogue, does a good job distinguishing among these species, as well as ascribing personality to each. The overall tone is humorous, but information is prominent as well. Keller's digitally enhanced illustrations are a delight. Many include collaged shapes, and her clever use of patterns denotes shading and scales on some species. Facial features and expressive, oversize eyes also help to convey the story's humor. Appended with additional facts, further reading, and advice (don't swim too close), this makes a good introduction to a perennial hot topic. - Copyright 2021 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 07/01/2021 K-Gr 5—If there were a competition for what's the greatest kind of shark, which species would be the winner? This fun and exuberant book aims to answer that question. The great white shark assumes he's the greatest, since he has "great" right in his name, but other sharks set him straight—he's not the fastest or the oldest or the biggest or the smallest. Each double-page spread shows the great white shark compared to another shark. The images demonstrate the scale of each shark as well as the coloration. The artwork is brightly colored and humanizes the sharks to emphasize the great white's disappointment with not being the greatest, to the amusement of readers. The conversation between the sharks is engaging enough to keep readers moving forward. There is a wonderfully detailed diagram of a shark's body as well as a double-page spread of shark facts. Future ichthyologists will spend hours poring over this book and, because of its friendly artwork, even kids who find sharks scary will be willing to read a story that's this much fun. VERDICT Don't miss this one. Kids are going to love reading this book and memorizing the facts, and teachers will love using this as a new kind of model for sharing informational texts.—Debbie Tanner, S.D. Spady Montessori Elem., FL - Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.