Hedgehog Haven: The Story of an English Hedgerow Community Book

Follows a day in the life of a six-month-old hedgehog, who avoids the dangers of tractor, draft horse and fox, and feasts on insects and other treats in her British hedgerow ...

Children's Literature

This entry in the "Soundprints Wild Habitats" storybook discovery series presents the British hedgerow habitat and the animals that live there. Readers follow the prickly hedgehog as it eats, sleeps, avoids danger, and travels across a field to meet a potential mate. The watercolor illustrations are attractive, sometimes dramatic and accurate. The text, presented in tidy framed rectangles, is written in immediate-sounding present tense and while not especially compelling, it gets the job done. Endmatter includes a map showing where Britain is, a note about hedgerows and hedgehogs, and a double-page gatefold that shows eighteen animals and plants found in hedgerows, both in individual squares and in the panorama that results when both are opened. A good introduction to this specific habitat. 2001, Soundprints, $15.95 and $5.95. Ages 5 to 9. Reviewer: Susan Hepler