BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Montgomery, Sy. 2006. QUEST FOR THE TREE KANGAROO AN EXPEDITION TO THE CLOUD FOREST OF NEW GUINEA. Ill. by Nic Bishop. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN 0618496416.
PLOT SUMMARY:
Most people have never heard of the Matschie’s tree kangaroo and even fewer know that they are an endangered animal. Sy Montgomery and Nic Bishop team up to change that in QUEST FOR THE TREE KANGAROO AN EXPEDITION TO THE CLOUT FOREST OF NEW GUINEA. With beautiful full color photos by Bishop, Montgomery writes the story of a scientific expedition to New Guinea to study this little known animal. Montgomery, Bishop, and a team of scientists led by Lisa Dabek travel to the cloud forests of New Guinea in order to find Matschie’s tree kangaroos. Their goal is to capture the animals, attach a radio collar, and release them back into the wild. Their journey is long and sometimes treacherous but in the end the payoffs are huge.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS:
In her quest for the tree kangaroo, scientist Lisa Dabek must travel to the cloud forest of New Guinea, climb a mountain, and brave the elements just in the hopes of seeing one. QUEST FOR THE TREE KANGAROO AN EXPEDITION TO THE CLOUD FOREST OF NEW GUINEA is the story of this journey accompanied by full color photograph of the expedition. Sy Montgomery gives a detailed account of the scientific journey and explains the flora and fauna that is encountered along the way. There is glossary provided to define unknown words that were heard from the natives of New Guinea. There are also resources provided that allows readers to further their knowledge about the tree kangaroo that includes websites. In addition to the story of the search for the tree kangaroo, there is information about conservation that everyone can follow and even tips for kids who are interested in science.
Nic Bishop’s color photos capture the journey and people involved. Along with breathtaking views of the landscape of the cloud forest, he shows us the plants, animals, and natives of New Guinea. Each picture has a caption that describes who or what is portrayed. Every aspect of the trip has been documented including the plane trip. Of course there are pictures of the tree kangaroo both in the wild and in the lab during scientific study. A picture of each of the members of the expedition is also in the book. A color map of New Guinea is shown at the beginning of the book to aid readers in the location of the area. The glossy pages and color photographs make this book appealing to young readers as well as adults. Many of the pages have a watercolor background of the trees and leaves of the cloud forest. Even readers who have never hear of the tree kangaroo will be attracted to this beautiful book and will enjoy following the scientists in their journey.
REVIEW EXCERPTS:
2007 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
2007 Orbis Pictus Award
2007 ALA Notable Book for Children
2007 NSTA-CBC Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children
2006 John Burroughs Honor List of Nature Books for Children
2006 Boston Authors Club Finalist
2006 ASPCA Henry Bergh Children's Book Award
Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
“Bishop's photographs, shots of the expedition members, striking close-ups of flora and fauna including the sought-for kangaroo and lush, green cloud forest scenes, are beautifully reproduced. From the maps in front to the concluding suggestions for young enthusiasts, information about the language, and index, this is another commendable title from an experienced team.”
Booklist, ALA, Starred Review
“Another beautifully illustrated entry in the Scientists in the field series... Montgomery gives a chronological, sometimes moment-by-moment account of the challenging climb into the remote cloud forest...[giving] an unusually strong, visceral sense of the work and cooperation fieldwork entails and the scope and uniqueness of this particular mission...As usual, Bishop's color photographs are exemplary and extend the excitement in close-ups of creatures and of the team at work.”
CONNECTIONS:
This book is a great resource for science classes studying endangered species.
It is also a resource for the study of conservation and ecology.
Other books in the Scientists in the Field Series include:
The Tarantula Scientist
The Bug Scientists
Hidden Worlds
The Woods Scientist
Looking for Life in the Universe
Secrets of Sound
Digging for Bird-Dinosaurs
Swimming with Hammerhead Sharks
Anthropologist
The Wildlife Detectives
Once a Wolf
The Snake Scientist
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