Can you taste with your toes or bathe with your nose? How about hearing with your legs and seeing with your ears? Such rib-tickling questions are at the heart of a rather delightful book by Sheela Preuitt & Praba Ram that introduces little readers to the intriguing world of animals. From butterflies and bats to elephants and electric eels, care has been taken to cover both common and uncommon animals.

Effectively infusing humour into science, Can You by Tulika Publishers frames interesting facts around attention-grabbing questions that lend superhuman abilities to the creatures and are sure to hook young readers. Sample these lines:

“Can you walk upside down on the ceiling?”

“If you’re a Gecko, you can!”

and then the text goes on to explain why geckos are ‘sticking specialists’.

The hilarious illustrations by the popular children’s illustrator, Ashok Rajagopalan, only add to the fun-quotient of this book that encourages wonder and curiosity about the world around us. Even adults may find themselves amazed!

By Aparna Kher