How to Spy on a Shark

Three students set out to follow a shark. They spot a mako pup and tag it. Then, they release a robot that follows the shark while providing live video feed. The scientists follow along in their boat observing what the shark eats and the creatures it encounters on their laptop. At the end of the day, they retrieve their robot and head home. The appendix contains some shark facts such as why to spy on sharks, the considerations of swimming alongside sharks, how the data collected are used, etc.

The illustrations are bright and bold, and the rhyming sentences are short, making it ideal reading for pre-school kids. Two of the human characters seem rather young to be tracking a shark. Some of the facts in the appendix could have been incorporated into the text, making it a more valuable read. The book’s main objective is to spark young minds in understanding the “shark world”—in this the book provides just enough detail to give educators (and parents) enough freedom to structure their book discussion as they feel is appropriate.