IF YOU SHOULD HEAR A HONEY GUIDE

by April Pulley Sayre ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 1995

With outstanding care and restraint, Sayre (Grasslands, 1994, not reviewed, etc.) introduces this unusual bird and tells the story of symbiosis in a spare, poetic text that is also exciting for reading aloud. Readers are told to follow the honey guide, a small brown bird from Kenya, and it will lead them to a tree of wild bees and their honey. The bird cannot always get into a honey supply without help, so uses a distinctive cry to attract the attention of the honey badger or a human. After leading them to the tree or other source, it waits for the badger to scatter honeycomb while it eats, or for the human to leave some honeycomb in an accessible spot. Readers meet several other animals of East Africa including elephants, cobras, zebras, lions, and crocodiles. Schindler's realistic renderings in soft brown, beige, and green complement the text. Double-page spreads show the vast openness of the wild bush country, and paintings of mottled and moss-covered tree trunks are rich in detail. An attractive, surprising, and useful volume.

Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1995

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1995

Categories: CHILDREN'S