The Late, Great Endlings: Stories of the Last Survivors

Celebrities always attract attention. In the animal world, certain individuals demand recognition for an unfortunate reason: extinction. This book’s focus is a list of eight “endlings” (last known survivors of a species) whose deaths were documented. They are introduced in verse mentioning a few high-profile vanished species—dodo, great auk, dinosaur—without a specific celebrity (but contradicting this with the statement “in each and every case....extinction had a face”). Each double spread features a watercolor and ink illustration and an obituary for the animal that includes date, a sentimental farewell poem and a brief paragraph of details about the fate of the individual and species. Following the profiles, the reader is invited, in verse, to predict the identity of the next endling, given a list of likely candidates (but no details of their situations). Several subsequent statements about extinction and its impacts complete the book, along with a one-page list of seven ways kids can make a difference.

The book fulfills the mandate of the subtitle—Stories of the Last Survivors—even if the stories are rather abbreviated. But it is also billed as “discussing the mass extinction crisis facing our planet...” and, on this point, it falls short. Only five sentences comment on the anticipated rate of extinction, how the interconnected nature of life forms will impact humans in further disappearances, and the fact of habitat loss as the biggest threat to wildlife. No explanations help with understanding, especially for the suggested readership of ages 6-8. Noting the main impact of extinctions will be on human life “in ways we can’t imagine” reinforces the narrow view that nature’s main role is to benefit humans. A major omission is any mention of biodiversity, a key concept for young readers to understand that ecosystems include all life forms, and why the loss of even one species matters to all others. A final page about “How Kids Can Make a Difference” is equally spare on detail: “avoid single-use plastics like straws or cups” is sound advice but needs some context to show specific negative effects of plastics. Reading and sharing books are part of three of the list of seven tips.

As a starting point, this collection of endlings may inspire curious readers—probably in the 8-12 range due to reading level and comprehension—to further consider the threats of habitat loss, hunting, poisoning and invasive species competition that can lead to species extinction. Unfortunately, The Late, Great Endlings: Stories of the Last Survivors feels like a missed opportunity to engage readers more deeply with the far-reaching effects surrounding these individual stories.