A Wisdom of Wombats

Gr 2-4–An aurora of polar bears. A bouquet of hummingbirds. A gaze of raccoons. These are a few of the collective nouns chosen to fill the pages this book, and while it’s not an original idea, the illustrations deliver page after page to pore over. The text is as spare as can be. Each spread features the collective noun of choice, such as “an obstinacy of buffalo,” and the definition of the word used to describe the group. Each word is accompanied by a phonetic pronunciation as well. Even readers who will never have cause to say “a surfeit of skunks” will find colorful phrases and words to add to their vocabularies. Children may open the book to learn silly phrases like “a crash of rhinoceroses,” but they will continue flipping the pages to admire the lovely illustrations. DePasquale uses contrasting and complementary colors to make the art pop. His skill with lighting is impressive.