"If there's an animal enthusiast on your holiday list, have a look at Ben Rothery's books about the natural world. These are beautiful works of nonfiction, large in size--always nice in a gift--and rich with illustrations that are so finely executed that you may mistake them for photographs. In "Hidden Planet," "Ocean Planet" and "Sensational Butterflies," Mr. Rothery writes as engagingly as he draws. "Whowould think, to look at them, that the elephant's closest relatives are the manatee, the dugong, and the rock hyrax?" he asks. "Or that seals, sea lions and walruses are not related to whales, dolphins or manatees, but rather to bears and weasels?" Children ages 7-13 (and their parents) won't merely enjoy themselves with these books; they'll also learn something." - Meghan Cox Gurdon, Wall Street Journal.