Canadian Trees

Sandy Campbell is a reference librarian in the Science and Technology Library at the University of Alberta.

In these first three volumes of the Nature Canada series, each animal or
plant is presented in a two-page spread, consisting of a painting and
text. The paintings are quite realistic and are the highlight of the
books. In the two volumes about animals, however, the layout places many
of the animals in the middle of the spread. As a result, the images are
often distorted by the crease of the gutter. In the trees volume, where
more of the paintings are landscapes, the distortion is not so
pronounced.

A problem with the trees volume is that “non-Canadian” characters
are used to depict how “Canadians” use certain tree species. For
example, Robin Hood is shown with yew trees, and a Hollywood-like pirate
is shown with oak trees. Robin Hood is not a Canadian folk hero and,
while Canada definitely had pirates, they were probably less romantic
than the parrot-on-the-shoulder type.

For each animal or plant, Mastin’s text begins with a two- or
three-verse rhyme about them. The rhyme is followed by a descriptive
text that includes natural-history information. The content appears to
be accurate, and is presented in an interesting and engaging way. For
the animals, the text describes behavior, life cycle, habitat, foods,
and the like. For the trees, physical characteristics as well as human
uses are described.

The inclusion of rhyme as part of the text makes this series useful not
only to elementary-school children but also to pre-readers who love
rhyme. Unfortunately, Mastin is a better writer of prose than of rhymes:
occasionally she wanders off into irrelevant concepts in order to
achieve a rhyme. Overall, though, a promising series. Recommended.