Down Down Down

Down Down Down

Written and Illustrated by Steve Jenkins

           

            Bibliography:

Jenkins, Steve. Down Down Down. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2009. ISBN:  978061896636

Summary and Critical Analysis:

In Steve Jenkins informational book Down Down Down, the reader is given a view of the ocean and its inhabitants from the surface to the deepest part of the ocean.  Jenkins starts with the surface of the ocean using a depth guide along the right side of each double page spread to explore the creatures, environment, and life at each level of oceanic depth.  The book is not meant to be a comprehensive look at all ocean life, but a selective look at some of the most interesting animals and ocean conditions with the goal of educating young readers about the extremely numerous life-forms that exist in the least explored area of the earth.

The illustrations are accurate without being photo-realistic as a way to introduce young readers to the general form and size of these creatures, and the conditions in which they live.  Written as a journey taken by the writer and the reader from the surface to the ocean floor, the book explores each level on the way down, each time with a depth guide in feet and meters to illustrate the level to which the journey has progressed.

From the top to the bottom the text explores the conditions that exist at each level, the animals that live there, what they eat and why they are suited to live at a specific level.  From the Surface to the Sunlit Zone to the Twilight Zone, the Dark Zone and the Abyssal Plain and interesting animals are introduced to young readers with Jenkins’ colorful illustration and descriptive and straightforward text.  The main portion of the book ends with an exploration of The Marianas Trench, the deepest part of the ocean and the start of the journey back to the surface.

The book would be educational, informative, and fun with only the first, illustrated part of the book.  However, Jenkins adds even detail and information with a more extensive look at the animals mentioned, and perspective drawings to show the size of the creatures compared to a human hand, a human body or other sea animals.  The text in this section is much more complete and informative than the text on the illustrated pages and includes feeding habits, prey, and the aspects of life in which these creatures live.  Each section takes a page from the front of the book, labels the animals with numbers and then gives an in depth description.

The book contains a short bibliography and a final chart showing how deep humans and vehicles can travel from the pearl diver who can dive 100 feet below the surface to the “Trieste” an exploratory vessel which was the first to reach the deepest part of the ocean.  Since there are no quotations or dialogue in the book, there is no list of sources nor is there an index.

The book is great way to introduce younger children to the amazing variety of life that lives in the sea and the unexplored nature of the most of the ocean.  Children will find the illustrations interesting and, at times, scary, and will be intrigued by creatures that they may never have know existed before.  Older children, who may think themselves too big for a picture book, will enjoy the more in depth information in the latter part of the book, and will be encouraged to explore the subject of ocean life more extensively.

Review Excerpts:

Goodreads:  Caldecott Honor–winning Steve Jenkins provides a top-to-bottom look at the ocean, from birds and waves to thermal vents and ooze.

Half the earth’s surface is covered by water more than a mile deep, but most of this watery world is a mystery to us. In fact, more people have stood on the surface of the moon than have visited the deepest spot in the ocean.
Come along as we travel

down,

down,

down,

from the surface to the bottom of the sea.
Along the way you can see jellyfish that flash like a neon sign, creatures with teeth so big, they can’t close their mouths, and even a squid as long as a bus, which battles to the death with a sperm whale, the largest predator on earth.
It’ll be a journey you won’t soon forget!

Amazon.com Editorial Review:  Caldecott honoree Steve Jenkins offers young readers a quietly stunning story about the world below the watery surface in Down, Down, Down: A Journey to the Bottom of the Sea. With his incredible paper collage illustrations of sea

creatures and informative text, Jenkins manages to plumbs the unfathomable depths of our oceans for the age 5-9 set in this perfect read-aloud and look closely book. Down, Down, Down captures the vastness, complexity and mysteriousness of the deep without over-simplifying the new research and astonishing discoveries. This oceanography lesson unfolds as a story in which the reader descends from the blue surface down nearly 36,000 feet (that’s seven miles down!) to the Marianas Trench, while meeting Flying Squids and Loosejaw Stoplight Fish along the way. This is an enchanting and informative choice for kids who loved the classic illustrations of Eric Carle, Lois Ehlert and Leo Lionni as pre-schoolers, but are ready to bump up to a nonfiction read. Children’s book collectors will surely want to get their hands on Down Down Down, too. --Lauren Nemroff

Cybils Award Nominee for Nonfiction Picture Books (2009)

An ALA Notable Children's Book for Middle Readers (2010)

 

Connections:

Have children draw their own pictures of the sea life shown in the book.

For a group project, have children work together to make an exhibit illustrating the levels of the ocean and the sea creatures that live in each section.

Have older children write a report on one chosen sea creature explaining its environment, its feeding habits, its prey, and its predators.

If located near an aquarium or university, have an expert in sea life visit the class to discuss the ocean and its impact on the rest of the planet, including the effects of Global Climate Change.