The Nocturnals: The Ominous Eye (Nocturnals #2), by Tracey Hecht/Illustrated by Kate Liebman, (Sept. 2016, Fabled Films Press), $15.99, ISBN: 978-1-944020-03-3
Recommended for ages 8-12
The three friends we met in The Mysterious Abductions are back! In this latest Nocturnals adventure, Dawn, the serious fox, Tobin, the sweet and nervous pangolin, and Bismark, the overconfident sugar glider, try to get to the bottom of a frightening jolt that shakes the earth. They meet a tuatara named Polyphema, who seems to know a lot more than she’s letting on. Polyphema talks about a Beast responsible for the earthquake and destruction, and how it will strike again if the animals don’t listen to her. Dawn seems to be the only one who doesn’t trust Polyphema; Bismark is smitten, and poor Tobin is just nervous.
Nocturnals is a fun animal series. This second book introduces some conflict into the small group of friends, illustrating that teamwork doesn’t always come easy, and that trust must be earned. Animal fiction fans will enjoy meeting more exotic animals in this book – I never knew what a tuatara was, or that they really do have a third eye! This little tidbit makes Polyphema an even more interesting character, making her insights and visions more believable to the animals in the story.
source: The Quantum Biologist
This is a good follow-up to the first book, and yet newcomers to the series can jump right in without having read the first book (but read it – it’s good!). Kate Liebman’s color illustrations add to the text, giving the reader a nice frame of reference for some of these new animals he or she will meet during the course of the book.
Animal fiction fans will enjoy this series. See if you can put out some animal atlases and have the research where the novels take place! Talk up nocturnal animals, and ask the kids to identify more nocturnal animals. Use the educator resources available on the Nocturnals website, especially the printable animal fact cards, to help them along. There’s a third Nocturnals book coming in March 2017, too – mark your calendars!
Mom Read It 