Move! (review)

Jenkins and Page continue their documentation of the natural world (see What Do You Do with a Tail Like This?, BCCB 3/03) with this exploration of animal movement. The narrative itself moves, beginning with one kind of action ("A gibbon swings through jungle trees . . ."), then allowing the page turn to reveal another action from the same animal (". . . or walks on two back legs"), then crossing the page to show a new animal with that same movement ("A jacana walks on floating lily pads . . ."), repeating that sequence for several different movements and animals. Formatting is as simple as the text, with the relevant movement titling the spread in huge bold letters, the animals' names bolded in the text, and the pair of animals in each spread floating against the white background, elegantly displaying Jenkins' inventive cut-paper textures and elaborate paper assemblies. It's an interesting idea, but the result is somewhat conceptually scattershot despite the structure, and some of the movements could use more explanation (what, for instance, is the penguin sliding on to get to the sea?); the most informative material is relegated to the appended spread of notes on the depicted species. Nonetheless, this is an unusual way of approaching animal behavior and characteristics that could refresh investigations of natural history.