If Elephants Disappeared
by Lily Williams
Roaring Brook Press (September 17, 2019)
Nonfiction * Animals * Elephants
Audience: Ages 4 to 8
Indiebound | WorldCat

Description from GoodReads:
What would happen if elephants disappeared? Trace the repercussions of a world without elephants in writer and illustrator Lily Williams' third picture book about loss and conservation.

The Congolese forest is home to many types of animals.
Some are strong.
Some are slippery.
Some are loud.
And some, like the elephant, are BIG.

The elephant has become synonymous with the image of African wildlife. They can grow over 10 feet tall and eat up to 300 pounds a day. While these giants are beloved figures in movies and zoos, they also play a large role in keeping the forest ecosystem healthy.

Unfortunately, poachers are hunting elephants rapidly to extinction for their ivory tusks, and that could be catastrophic to the world as we know it.

Quick thoughts on the book:
I was waiting to review this book closer to its release date and then somehow I missed it. So, a belated book birthday to Lily Williams’ 3rd book in her If…Disappeared series, If Elephants Disappeared.

Williams introduces readers to the African forest elephant. In her author’s note, she explains that scientists have now determined that there are two distinct species of African elephants - savannah and forest. For the focus of this book, readers learn about African forest elephants and the significant role they play in a healthy forest.

“Elephants are a keystone species, which means that their actions - from walking, to eating, to pooping, to sleeping - shape their environment.”

Though the book may appear to be designed for a younger audience, the concept of biodiversity as described in the book will provide readers of all ages with questions to contemplate. And isn’t any good informational text supposed to make us think and to also ask more questions?

Additionally, the if…then format provides older readers with a mentor text for exploring this writing style.