A strong, fresh selection of poetry from various cultures is unified by the vigorous, boldly colored creatures which are the subject of this visual celebration. Over five dozen brief poems by haiku poets, Emily Dickinson, D. H. Lawrence, Ogden Nash, Edward Lear, Rudyard Kipling, Laura Richards, Mary Jane Hoberman, Karla Kuskin and others are indexed by their first lines at the back. The 74 animals cited are arranged in an alphabetical index. (Ages 3-9)