Informational Text

Down, Down, Down

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Jenkins, Steve. 2008. DOWN, DOWN, DOWN. Harcourt Mifflin Harcourt: Massachusetts. ISBN: 9780618966363.

PLOT SUMMARY:
This book takes the reader on a journey to the deepest depths of the ocean, from the water's edge to the middle of the earth. The underwater creatures grow more and more curious as the drawings and explanations become more and more bizarre.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS:
Steve Jenkins knows how to capture an audience, and proves it once again with DOWN, DOWN, DOWN. This book about the ocean gives detailed descriptions of the world's most insane-looking ocean-dwellers. It begins in the waters just off the coast with animals with which most readers will be somewhat familiar. With each page a deeper look into the sea is revealed (literally!), and by the third page one cannot wait to turn the page to discover the next outrageous living thing that abides in an area that is not likely to be visited by most. The illustrations, which are composed of paper that is cut and torn to create artful impressions of sea creatures, are full of vivid colors, sure to draw even the most cynical eye. The text is small and made to accompany the pictures as opposed to most books, in which the pictures are drawn to go with the text. On the side of each illustration is a scale that alerts the reader to which depth of the sea the page is demonstrating. The journey is as amazing and unbelievable as the introduction promises, delivering the "jellyfish that flash like a neon sign, creatures with teeth so big, they can't close their mouths, and even a squid as long as a bus, which battles to the death with a sperm whale, the largest predator on earth!"


REVIEW EXCERPTS:
ALA Notable Book, 2010
2009 Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Book
One of Eight Most Notable Children's Books of 2009 List, New York Times
2011 Beehive Book Award Nominee
"Once again, Jenkins provides an almost irresistible entry into our natural world for the youngest readers." --Kirkus Reviews
"Depicted in Jenkins's signature handsome collages, the denizens of each level swim against ever-darkening backgrounds ranging from sunny blue to deepest black." --School Library Journal

CONNECTIONS:
Text-to-world connections can be made be easily made by using this book as a read aloud prior to an aquarium visit or a unit on the ocean. Students may find text-to-self connections if they have ever been to the coast and seen or heard of any of the animals described in this book. Text-to-text connections may be discovered by reading other books on the oceans or any of Steve Jenkins' other works, such as BONES, WHAT DO YOU DO WITH A TAIL LIKE THIS?, or HOW TO CLEAN A HIPPOPOTAMUS, among others.