Book Review (Nonfiction and Biography): Quest for the Tree Kangaroo

Bibliography Montgomery, Sy. 2006. QUEST FOR THE TREE KANGAROO: AN EXPEDITION TO THE CLOUD FOREST OF NEW GUINEA. Photographs by Nic Bishop.  Houghton Mifflin Company: Boston, MA. ISBN 0618496416

Summary
Sy Montgomery details a scientific expedition into the heart of New Guinea in search of the rare tree kangaroo with scientist Lisa Dabek and her crew. Along for the journey is photographer Nic Bishop, who captures the journey using his camera.

Critical Analysis
Quest for the Tree Kangaroo contains accurate and informative documentation that is based on an actual expedition into the forest of New Guinea. Montgomery has established herself as a reputable writer, plus since she was on the expedition, she was able to experience and document all of the events as a first hand witness. Photographer Nic Bishop is also known for his photographs of the natural world, and was also on the expedition. This book has many of the organizational features of informational texts, like an index, photo captions, and subheadings. This is helpful because information was not always presented in a logical manner, and the book was chock full of other information, not just information about the expedition. For example, there is a section of the book about the people of New Guinea, including pictures of school children.

This text-heavy informational book is supplemented with photographs by Nic Bishop. Sometimes the small font and the quantity of text on a page are overwhelming to the reader, especially younger readers. Young readers would still be able to gain information about the book by reading the photo captions and looking at the pictures.

Since this book was written by someone that was actually on the expedition, the style is unique and engaging. It is clear that Montgomery is passionate about her work and documenting what she sees. There is almost too much information included with the book.

Review Excerpt and Awards
Montgomery and Bishop follow award-winning titles such as The Tarantula Scientist (2004) with another beautifully illustrated entry in the Scientists in the Field series. This time, they join researchers on a grueling expedition in Papua New Guinea to track the rare Matschie's tree kangaroo. Montgomery gives a chronological, sometimes moment-by-moment account of the challenging climb into the remote cloud forest, the conditions in camp (rice-and-fern dinners, icy waterfall showers), and the awe-inspiring encounters with barely studied animals. The text occasionally veers into a casual tone ("a leech dropped into Lisa's eye. Yuck!") that seems aimed at a young audience, while the small font, exacting detail, and meandering narrative may demand older readers. Still, Montgomery gives an unusually strong, visceral sense of the work and cooperation fieldwork entails and the scope and uniqueness of this particular mission. She also communicates the thrill of studying animals in the wild, making observations, and discovering new information. As usual, Bishop's color photographs are exemplary and extend the excitement in stunning close-ups of creatures and of the team at work. Web resources, notes about conservation, and a glossary of Tok Pisin (the language spoken by the team's Papuan members) are appended. Gillian Engberg, Booklist

Awards:

Green Earth Book Award, 2007 Honor Book
Henry Bergh Children's Book Award, 2006 Winner Non-Fiction Environment and Ecology
Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children, 2007 Winner
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal, 2007 Honor Book

Strengths and Weaknesses
Quest for the Tree Kangaroo is filled with information about the expedition into New Guinea while looking for the tree kangaroo, which is a major strength for the book. Also, information is included that really gives readers an accurate picture of what it is like to be a field scientist. Montgomery also includes information about conservation and the importance of taking care of animals. Another strength of this book is the photographs by Nic Bishop. His photos bring life to the story and give meaning to the expedition.

One of the weaknesses of the book is that it almost contains too much information, the quantity of text could be overwhelming to less advanced readers; also the information can be too detailed. For example, there are seven pages dedicated to the people of New Guinea and how they live, which although it is good information, it doesn’t necessarily relate to the quest. Another weakness of the book is that more photographs could have been used to convey the information rather than text. For example, Montgomery mentions the cloud forest frequently, but there are very few pictures to show the forest.

Personal Response and Connections
Quest for the Tree Kangaroo is not just a book about an expedition into the forest of New Guinea, but it also a means to inspire children to follow their passions. Montgomery gives background information on the lead scientist, Lisa Dabek. We learn that she is allergic to animals and has asthma, and she has not let her circumstances stop her from pursuing her passions. Dabek says to “Follow your passion!” and your circumstances should not get in the way.

This book could be used for several library activities. One of the things that could be done is after reading this book; students can research a job that they feel they could be passionate about someday. Another activity would be to tie this book into wildlife and conservation study.