Terryl Whitlatch

Summer 2019:

A random Half Price Book find, this book is an absolute gem. The first thing you can't help but notice is that the whole front and back of the book are a textured hard cover, made to feel like the scales of some great creature. On the inside of the front cover and stretching all the way to the inside of the back cover is a size guide ranking all the animals together, as well, which is amazing.

I absolutely picked it up for the Naboo Sections (breaking down individually ecosystems and animals in Theedside, The Abyss, and The Gungan Swamp), but I was blown away by every part of this book.

The art is staggering gorgeous, with black and white sketches and color sketches side by sides. There are usually adorable baby and adolescent versions of all the creatures. There are even several side-by-sides where you can see the anatomical structure of the creatures as well. I will enjoy having this as a reference on my shelf going forward.… (more)

I was shaking with excitement when I first put my hands upon this wonderful book. Not only am I all but obsessed with lemurs, but I also have a fascination with animals and fairy tales. If you sat down and tried to write a book perfect for me, you could not do any better then Terryl Whitlatch and David Michael Wieger. After all, how many books do you see with aye-ayes?

The gorgeous illustrations, of course, have the most instant appeal. This is no thin picture book, but over 180 pages long and nearly every double page spread contains at least one delightful picture, filled with breath-taking detail. The turning of every page is a delight, and every time I study a picture there are new, exquisite details to be seen and more exotic creatures to be discovered. I just wish there was a list at the back or somewhere on the internet so that I could confirm my identifications of some of the more obscure species.

The story itself is equally delightful. It has a simple, fable-like quality that I enjoy immensely and matches well with the pictures. It tells the tale of Katook, a young lemur that is exiled from his troop for discovering what he shouldn't. He then sets out on an epic journey that takes him through a wide range of habitats and meets all sorts of quirky and intriguing characters, including Quigga, a somewhat arrogant Quagga. The two become good friends, and the ending hints at more to come.

This is a book I would dearly love to read aloud (had I anyone to read it to). Children today need more tales like this - a beautiful book, a charming story and some powerful and important messages about friendship and family. It also brings awareness to some of the animals we have lost, and some that we will lose if we're not careful.

Everyone, young or old, that loves animals, NEEDS to own this book.… (more)

Katook, a lemur, sees something he should not have seen and the village priests banish him from his home island. Katook goes on a great quest and meets a quagga named Quigga. They go on many adventures together as they both try to find homes they belong in.
The story was long and not meant to be read in one sitting. The illustrations are the shining piece of this book. They are really wonderful, on the level with the illustrations in Dinotopia. The story failed to keep my interest, but I kept flipping through the book to look at the illustrations.
I'll be keeping this one to share with my children in twenty years.

http://www.amazon.ca/The-Katurran-Odyssey/dp/0743225007/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s...… (more)