Tatchell’s most recent addition to her Endangered and Misunderstood Animals series, following “Tarsier Sings His Songs,” concerns a perfectly quaffed cotton-top tamarin who, after giving the rest of her brethren “monkey-doos,” sets out to fix the hair of everyone in the jungle. The only problem is that not everyone in the jungle wants their hair fixed—and not everyone in the jungle has hair to fix—but cotton-top tamarin doesn’t understand why other animals resist her. “It’s only that I care,” she says, determined, even after a dangerous run-in with a snake and quarrel with a tapir, but she makes the biggest mistake when she decides to style the hair of a sleeping human.

Written in rhymed quatrains, the fifth installment in Tatchell’s series has a lyrical flow engaging for kids and adults alike, but in addition to style, the author also seamlessly fills the lines with an impressive amount of facts about the animals featured. For example, the plot centers on the cotton-top tamarin’s grooming behavior, which is common among this species and other primates, and Tatchell also makes mention of the cotton-top tamarin’s complex language: “With thirty-eight different sounds // they chirp and squeal and squeak.” With the support of Ivan Sulima’s textured, vibrant illustrations, Tatchell’s narrative strikes a balance between effective storytelling and educational enrichment.

The charming illustrations, blending grand cartoonish expressiveness with eye-pleasing polish suggesting the best of Pixar, also maintain the animals’ anatomy and educate readers visually. Toucan’s beak jumps off the page, and finer details, like sloth’s fur, snails climbing on tree branches, and flowers blooming on almost every page, serve to depict the jungle as a home radiating with life and abundance. Children passionate about animals, and specifically endangered ones, will learn about the cotton-top tamarin and the importance of respecting differences between people, between animals, and hair-dos.

Takeaway: Delightful story of a tamarin’s vow to fix the hair of everyone in the jungle.

Comparable Titles: Justin Anderson’s Snow Leopard: Ghost of the Mountains, and Chelsea Clinton’s Don’t Let Them Disappear.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: B
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A