In my opinion, the book "Old Shell , New Shell" was a great book for young readers and a great addition to a classroom library. I liked how the text on each page varied in size, which put emphasis on important words in the story. For example, one page reads, "'Sort of like THIS shell,' he said to a passing line of spiny lobsters, 'but BIGGER!'" I also really liked how even though the story was about the hermit crab trying to find a bigger shell, the reader is introduced to a lot of different sea animals who the hermit crab asks for help about finding a new shell. He asks the puffer fish, the angel fish, the clown fish, and the lobster. But he also encounters an eel who tries to eat him and another hermit crab who tries to take the shell that he has fallen in to. This allows the readers to experience the variety of life in the ocean while also providing a cute and simple story. Another great feature of this book was that in the back, there is a wide variety of information. There is a "Key to the Reef" which provides a map of where coral reefs are located and some brief information about the coral reef. There is also a photo of each page of the book that has all of the animals and plants numbered. Corresponding with the numbers are numbers below that explain what each animal or plant in the picture is. There is also a brief paragraph about each animal. For example, number 8 on page 1 is a Christmas tree worm. The text below reads: "One of the fan worms, this creature is named after the plume-like tentacles through which is breathes and feeds." This is definitely a great learning tool for readers and is definitely a reason why I would put this book in my classroom. The big idea of the story was to find the hermit crab a new shell and to expose the reader to different life in the coral reef. ( )