Curious creatures talking together by Zoë Armstrong and Anja Sušanj

Communicating and connecting with others is a critical part of human behaviour and essential for their well-being, whether it be through the spoken word, body language or other means like sounding a siren or wearing a school uniform. But the animal world is just as 'talkative' whether it be through sound, movement, colour or smell and in this book , the third in this series, young readers are introduced to some of the ways animals communicate and why and how they do it.

There are spiders that dance, whales that sing and lemurs that communicate with seriously smelly stink fights! Australia has its own entries including the tiny peacock spider that displays a colourful fan as part of its mating routine, and the satin bowerbird with its propensity for all things blue (and the focus of the 2024 National Simultaneous Storytime).

Throughout, there is a link to how the animals' behaviour is similar to that of humans, such as the wearing of bright clothes to attract attention much as the peacock spider does, and there is an underlying message of trying to understand what they are 'saying' so we become more empathetic and protective of them.

Absolutely fascinating, particularly for those who are interested in the animal kingdom already, and worth seeking out the others in the series.

Barbara Braxton