Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, April 15, 2008 (Vol. 76, No. 8))
In a natural follow-up to Follow the Line (2006) and Follow the Line Through the House (2007), Ljungkvist runs a new continuous black line from the front cover through each continent, back to New York City, into space for a gander at the universe, then onto the rear cover to spell out a cheery "Hej då" ("bye-bye" in Swedish). Along the way that versatile line draws easily recognizable giraffes and elephants, cacti, camels, kangaroos and polar bears—all mingling with pale-hued images of flora and fauna in silkscreen-style settings and captioned with scattered bits of natural history: "Camels have big padded feet to help them walk on the soft, hot sand." Retracing the entire itinerary across a map on the final spread, she closes with a plea to "Help save the animals and keep the air clean, / the water pure, and the forests green." Like its predecessors, this offers at once a challenging exercise for budding artists and a satisfying journey for armchair travelers. 2008, Viking, 32p, $16.99. Category: Picture book. Ages 5 to 8. © 2008 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Carl A. Harvey II (Library Media Connection, September 2008)
In this third book of the series, the author takes the reader on an adventure all over the world. As in the previous books, Follow the Line (Viking, 2006) and Follow the Line Through the House (Viking, 2007), one line starts on the cover and leads readers all the way to the last page. In this book each page brings animals, buildings, and people all drawn with one single, continuous line. The unique concept provides for some beautiful illustrations. The author then adds color and additional pictures of animals to fill out the page. The text is simple and leads the reader from page to page, but in addition there are a variety of interesting facts and tidbits of information for those readers who want to learn more. Recommended. 2008, Viking Children's Books (Penguin Young Readers Group), 32pp., $16.99 hc.. Ages 5 to 8.

Carol April (Science Books and Films (Vol. 45, No. 1))
With all the concern about global warming, the endangered rain forest, and the possible extinction of certain animal species, Laura Ljungkvist presents a gentle environmental message in her children’s book Follow the Line Around the World, the third in her series of Follow the Line... books. Ljungkvist started her career as a professional illustrator and wrote two children’s books before beginning her Follow the Line... series. In this title, she takes her readers on a journey around the world to meet animals and explore their habitats, using a black line to take the reader from page to page. The illustrations are a combination of black outlines of animals and filled-in colorful drawings of other animals. The first two pages contain a rhythmic text that introduces the reader to what the book is about. The text on each second page ends with “turn the page and...,” which encourages the reader to keep going to see what is next. Ljungkvist moves from the hot sun in Kenya to the waters off Greenland, to the hot sun in the Sahara Desert, and on. She devotes two pages to each part of the world that is presented and provides simple text explaining facts about the region. Some of the text is placed inside the illustration, while other text is above or circling the illustration, which gives the book a creative, artistic feel. Her use of colors also conveys a feeling of the environment in each area. For example, the two pages about the rain forest have a green background, while the pages on the Sahara Desert have a yellow background. The last two pages show a black line crisscrossing the world and identify those areas which were described in the book, along with presenting the message that Planet Earth is ours to take care of—how we need to help to save animals and keep the air clean, the water pure, and the forest green. This book would appeal to preschool-aged children, who could have it read to them, as well as to school-aged children in grades K-3 who are learning about the environment. C.I.P. Highly Recommended, Grades PreK-4. 2008, Viking, 28pp., $16.99. Ages 4 to 10.

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, Fall 2008)
This third Follow the Line book goes global, beginning in Kenya and ending in space, with fact-provisioned stops along the way. The "line" is jumpy, going from Sri Lanka to Mexico, for example, and what it traces isn't always the most interesting image on the page. Still, there's lots to look at, and the book will keep little eyes and fingers busy. Category: Nonfiction-History. 2008, Viking, 32pp, $16.99 (hb). Ages 2 to 5. Rating: 4: Recommended, with minor flaws.