When I was growing up, I think we got most of our information about the world from ladybird books and an old atlas which was kicking about the place. My son can spend hours pouring over atlases and he has a few which he dips in and out of. We’ve recently acquired a copy of The Totally Wild, Fact-Packed, Fold-Out Animal Atlas which ticks all the right boxes for my animal obsessed, map loving son.

The Totally Wild, Fact-Packed, Fold-Out Animal Atlas by Jen Green and illustrated by Christine Engel is a bright, colourful animal atlas which is designed specifically to make the vast reaches of our planet tangible for a young audience. It features beautiful, detailed maps that children will love to pore over, discovering something new each time. A fabulous “pop-up” map shows the world’s animal biomes at a glance and the accessible text is packed full of amazing facts on record-breaking animals, creatures to beware of, and animals that work alongside people.

The atlas is divided by continent, and there are gatefolded pages filled with colourful artworks, photographs and illustrations that show biomes and terrains as well as wildlife. Other maps show people, places and political boundaries. This Fold-Out Animal Atlas is designed to help you discover people, creatures and amazing physical and man-made features, and find out how every part of our planet is both vital and connected.

Each page is packed with bite-size facts which are easily digestible, with lots of talking points and there’s even a quiz. It’s a great book for younger children to look at with a parent, and for older children to enjoy by themselves. It is just right for my seven year old son, he’s spent several evenings before bed reading the atlas and looking at the beautifully illustrated maps.

It’s really wonderful when you find books which your children love and enjoy reading, which help them learn too. This is one of those books, it’s part of a wider series of fold out atlases, so if they enjoy this book, you can get others like it too. It’s an animal atlas thumbs up from us!

The Totally Wild, Fact-Packed, Fold-Out Animal Atlas by Jen Green is published in paperback in August 2018. The atlas costs £9.99 and is widely available in good bookshops and online.