Pu and Ru's Bird Beak Clues

Pu and Ru are on an adventure to identify a host of New Zealand birds. Clever clues are written in rhyme, with a sneaky peek of the bird’s beak included in the image for readers to guess which bird is being described. Then turn the page and the bird, together with a few facts, is revealed.

This book is very cleverly presented with enough clues in the picture for the youngest of readers to begin to identify the birds. There are more clues in the text as to how the birds feed and their habitat in the illustrations. Lastly, as they progress, they will learn more of the facts from the identifying page. I appreciate that Jez Smith has not overwhelmed the audience with too much information, thereby holding young readers attention and sparking curiosity about our native birds.

Ned Barraud’s illustrations are inspired, animating the birds enough to be fun without losing their integrity. While the bird’s habitats and food sources are not described in the text the illustrations are so detailed they are an obvious extension for shared discussion.

I love this book and can see it growing with the reader as they absorb all it has to offer over multiple reads.