Horn Book Review
Joan Procter (18971931) was fascinated by reptiles and engaged with them as an herpetologist, researcher, and zoo-exhibit designerbut also on a personal level, forging connections with animals not generally perceived as being friendly to humans. In Valdezs affirming picture-book biography, readers are immersed in Procters world, from her childhood bedroom (where she developed her obsession with lizards and her talents in observing and documenting their characteristics) to the museums and zoos of early-twentieth-century London (where the arrival of the first Komodo dragons from Indonesia caused a public and scholarly sensation). Valdez refers subtly throughout the book to the chronic illness that led to Procters death at age thirty-four but mainly emphasizes all that Procter accomplished in her short life: important contributions to reptile taxonomy, the modern design ?of the Reptile House at the London Zoo, and fearless interactions with ?Sumbawa the Komodo dragon. Salas illustrations portray a stylish woman of the 1920s, with a long rope of pearls around her neckand a variety of small lizards on her shoulders and wristscommuning with the creatures she loved. The final pages include photographs of Procter as a young girl and adult woman as well as more details about her remarkable life and about Komodo dragons. Appended with a substantial bibliography. danielle j. ford (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Valdez introduces Joan Procter, whose lifelong love of reptiles yielded a career at London's Natural History Museum and the London Zoo. Avid for reptiles from childhood, Joan received a crocodile for her 16th birthday. First assisting, then succeeding the museum's curator of reptiles, Joan surveyed the collections, published papers, and made models for exhibits. Her designs for the zoo's reptile house incorporated innovative lighting and heating as well as plants and artwork evoking the reptiles' habitats. Joan's reputation soared with the arrival of two 7-foot-long Komodo dragons, coinciding with the reptile house's opening. Presenting a paper at the Zoological Society, Joan brought along one of them, Sumbawa, who ate a pigeon whole and strolled among attendees. Valdez's narrative alludes to Procter's poor health obliquely: pet reptiles cheered her "on the days Joan was too sick to attend school," and a later spread depicts her "riding through the zoo" in a wheelchair. (An appended note explains that a "chronic intestinal illness" led to Joan's death at just 34.) Sala portrays stylized reptiles and 1920s-era British clothing. People's skin tones range from stark white to various tans and browns. Indeed, although she was white, Joan's skin varies throughout, sometimes appearing white and pink and others times various shades of beige.This view into Procter's brief life connects her early passion for reptiles with her innovative career combining scientific research, practice, art, and design. (author's note, bibliography of primary sources, photographs) (Picture book/biography. 6-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
