Brian Wildsmith's Animal Gallery

Collective nouns are the order of the day in this book highlighting animal groupings. From the savannah to the outback, from the woodlands to the tundra, and even from under the sea, Wildsmith features animals from all stretches of the world in this non-fiction book. Readers may recognize some of Wildsmith’s choice of collective nouns (e.g. “a pride of lions”, “a family of otters”), but the vast majority are likely to provide a moment of delightful learning and appreciation for how aptly they capture each animal’s personality (e.g. “a bloat of hippos”, “ a pandemonium of parrots”). Wildsmith’s absolutely stunning illustrations in mixed media infuse this topic (which has been done many times before, but perhaps never so well) with vibrant personality—colorful, full of texture and pattern, and simultaneously exquisite and raw, they perfectly match the majesty of the animal kingdom.