Jake and Ava: A Boy and a Fish By Jonathan Balcombe, Rebecca Evans, Illustrator
From All-Creatures.org Book Reviews/Interviews

Author: Jonathan Balcombe, Rebecca Evans, Illustrator

Several Reviews

Publisher: The Gryphon Press

Jake and Ava: A Boy and a Fish
Available at The Gryphon Press
ASIN: 0940719460
ISBN: 9780940719460

Reviews:

“Archerfishes like Ava are amazing beings. They are not only very bright but also have rich and deep emotional lives like the companion animals with whom we’re more familiar. In Jake and Ava, author Jonathan Balcombe tells a story of much needed empathy and kindness from a boy to a fish that deserves a broad global audience.”
– Marc Bekoff, Ph.D., author of Animals at Play and Jasper's story: Saving Moon Bears

Jake and Ava: A Boy and a Fish is a gorgeous book with a beautiful message: that all creatures love their lives just like we love ours. (Photo credit: Paula Gordon)
– Sy Montgomery, author of Becoming a Good Creature

“This tender tale will evoke empathy in young readers. And, the art is exquisite.”
– Joyce Sidman, winner of The Sibert Medal and the NCTE Award for excellence in Poetry for Children, author of The Girl who Drew Butterflies and many other titles.

“Jonathan Balcombe’s book will help children see fishes in the way they should be seen—as animals who deserve to be treated with kindness and respect. Jake and Ava is a meaningful and enjoyable story experience.”
– Aysha Akhtar, MD, MPH, author of Our Symphony With Animals. On Health, Empathy and Our Shared Destinies.

About the Author and Illustrator:

Jonathan Balcombe is a biologist with a PhD in ethology, the study of animal behavior. His books include Pleasurable Kingdom, Second Nature, The Exultant Ark, and What a Fish Knows, a New York Times best-seller translated into fifteen languages. Super fly: The Unexpected Lives of the World’s Most Successful Insects is forthcoming in May 2021 from Penguin Books.

Rebecca Evans is an illustrator and author living in Maryland. Her illustratuons include: Jeannie Houdini by Mary-Ann Stouck, The Gryphon Press, 2019; Is 2 a Lot: An Adventure With Numbers by Annie Watson, Tilbury House Publishers, 2019; PLANTS FIGHT BACK by Lisa Amstutz, Dawn Publications, 2020; IF ANIMALS BUILT YOUR HOUSE by Bill Wise, Dawn Publications, 2020; ALONE LIKE ME, Anne Schwartz Books, 2022.


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