Mud pond. What if we changed our point of view? Dutch author Eva Moraal takes us to discover the wildlife of wetlands. These are the animals who explain their world to these funny humans. Accessible from seven years old.
Did you know that beavers raise the inside of their roost to avoid getting their feet wet? That the European badger’s worst enemy is humans? And that swifts never put their feet on the ground during the first two years of their life? Welcome to the fascinating world of wet meadow and marsh wildlife.
This is the environment in which the two Dutch authors of this very beautiful work operate on a daily basis: Eva Moraal, for the texts, and Marieke ten Berge for the engraving. The illustrations, refined and full of life, are displayed on a full page to take us into the territories of 35 animals “small in size, like field frogs or larger, like beavers”. And, this time, it is the animals who speak and take the reins of the story, to tell us about their world. An interesting change of prism to discover with poetry “this large garden that we share with the animals”.
Each species reveals its passions, its know-how and its relationship with the human species, often invasive, sometimes criminal. With, in the background, a question posed like a wish: “Isn’t it time to no longer subject biodiversity to the consequences of our too often thoughtless lives? The animals in this book have a lot to say about this. Let’s take the time to listen to them.”
The subject is illuminated by small practical sheets, which take stock of the state of conservation of the animal. In short, a book of very good publishing quality: one of those that we like to feel and hold in our hands, to peck at it like so many bedtime stories, from the age of seven.
Between earth and water, Marieke ten Berge, Eva Moraal, editions Rue du monde, 88p, €22.
The opinion of Ada, seven years old
“I loved this book, especially the drawings. Each page is about an animal, so it doesn’t get mixed up; each animal tells things about its life and we realize that they don’t like humans, because they hunt them, they destroy their homes… It teaches us a lot about animals, what we do to them and how they live. For example, that there are very, very old terriers, that badgers are still hunted in France, and that many animals die younger than my age. Sometimes there are words that I don’t know, but that doesn’t stop me from understanding and it allows me to learn them. On the other hand, I liked the little sheets less, which I don’t really understand. The illustrations are so beautiful, sometimes you have the impression that they are photos. It makes the animals so cute! And each page has a kind of different color, it makes the book very pretty.”
