Wild About Camping

Wild About Camping describes the fun and adventure of camping. The activities of the brother and sister in setting up camp and enjoying the outdoors are mirrored in the behaviours of the woodland animals. Animals included in the story are jays, bears, moose, deer, loons, squirrels, hares, raccoons, wolves, owls, mice, and moles. Each animal reflects a shared human characteristic. The jays are chatting, the bears snoozing, the moose is pulling and tugging, the deer racing, the squirrels scurrying, the loons floating, the hares bouncing, the raccoons rubbing their faces and hands, the wolves munching, the owls calling, the mice shaking , and the moles burrowing.

The full-page, full-colour, cartoon format illustrations complement the text, showing animals engaged in human-like activities. The raccoons are washing their faces with soap and water, the owl is playing a banjo, the wolves are sitting at a table eating fruit and cheese, and the moles are in their underground home with pictures on the wall.

The entire text is written in poetic format with unrhymed couplets. The author has used poetic language throughout the book. Chatting, chirping jays, and scurrying squirrels are examples of some alliterations. Dozing, snoozing bears and bobbing loons are examples of onomatopoeia.

Young children will enjoy reading or having Wild About Camping read to them. It might be a discussion starter for those children who have enjoyed camping or spent time with nature in the outdoors. It is also a good book to start the discussion about the characteristics of animals and how they are similar in some ways to humans and how they differ from each other.