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COUNTING IS FOR THE BIRDS by Jr. Mazzola

COUNTING IS FOR THE BIRDS

by Jr. Mazzola & illustrated by Jr. Mazzola

Pub Date: March 1st, 1997
ISBN: 0-88106-951-5
Publisher: Charlesbridge

An effective beginning backyard-bird book is muddied with the addition of poetry and counting to its equation. Beginning with a lone feeder, pairs of birds flock to feast, creating the numbers 020. Each numbered pair is coupled with a short, rhymed verse that depicts actions and habits of birds such as cardinals, downy woodpeckers, sparrows, and tufted titmice. The body of the text is verse, followed by brief factoids about the bird. This is the war of the formats: The same information presented in poetic form is often needlessly restated in the factual paragraph. A crafty cat stalks the feeder, waiting to pounce, Ö la Lois Ehlert's Feathers for Lunch (1990). High- resolution digital illustrations painted onscreen using a personal computer are detailed with the precision of a photograph, appropriate for identification but lacking a heartbeat. (Picture book. 5-8)