Common Sense Media Review
By Tracy Moore
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Hilarious tongue-in-cheek tale teaches acceptance.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 5+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
When a group of carnivores are hurt by their reputations as savage meat eaters, they band together to try to fit in, attempting everything from disguises to abandoning meat eating altogether. Along the way, they have to figure out how to accept themselves, and how to live with being misunderstood.
Is It Any Good?
CARNIVORES is a tongue-in-cheek riot. Told from the perspective of animals who long for acceptance in spite of their bad raps, the book explores the hilarious lengths to which people (and animals) will go to fit in, rendered vibrantly with mixed-media illustrations that wouldn't be out of place in a graphic novel.
For kids, the bold, silly humor and social concerns of these bloodthirsty predators will be a hilarious read. For parents with school-age kids, the notion that there's just no use trying to be something you're not is a valuable lesson that can't be taught soon enough.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about meat eating vs. vegetarianism. What are some reasons for eating meat? What are some reasons against?
Many animals eat only meat, but some eat just plants. Humans can subsist on protein found in plant and animal sources. What kinds of protein do you eat in your family? What's your favorite?
What does it mean to fit in? Have you ever felt you should change something about yourself to fit in? What happened? How did it make you feel?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Dan Santat
- Genre : Picture Book
- Topics : Animals ( Ocean Creatures , Wild Animals ) , STEM
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Chronicle Books
- Publication date : August 20, 2013
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 4 - 8
- Number of pages : 40
- Available on : Nook, Hardback, Kindle
- Last updated : October 1, 2025
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