An inquiry into the world of nature in general and forests specifically that will lead children to form observations and...
What can you see in a forest?
A series of questions leads readers through an evocative visual experience in this exploration of the woods, its plants, and its creatures. The book begins with, “What do you see when you see a forest floor? Do you see feet—yours and mine—and the marks of others who have crossed this path, on hoof or paw?” It then moves through other sights, including animals, leaves, trees, clouds, days and nights, seasons, colors, flowers, finally leading up to: “Do you see the invitation of the forest, weaving all our lives together? What do you see when you see a forest?” Realistic, digitally rendered art is closely paired with the various descriptions, which focus on perceptions and perspectives related to interconnectivity, sustainability, and nature in all its forms. While the goals here seem to be education and nature appreciation as opposed to anything literary, the text has a lyrical quality. Grace notes in the art include a liberal attitude toward breaking the frame, as when strands of a spider’s web stretch across white space. This first in the See to Learn series is ideal for starting a dialogue about the natural world both at home or in the classroom.
An inquiry into the world of nature in general and forests specifically that will lead children to form observations and questions of their own. (author’s note, further reading) (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-55498-879-2
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Groundwood
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
Given the plethora of similar titles, rate this an O for overdone and opt for a better one, such as Ramon Olivera’s ABCs on...
Kids seem to have an innate fascination with machinery, and this alphabet of vehicles will challenge them to name 26 and pair them with their corresponding letters of the alphabet.
In concept, this is nothing new, but it’s Ayliffe’s execution that makes this one stand out—but not necessarily in a great way. Intensely saturated colors bleed off the pages, overpowering the simple shapes that lack line definitions and featureless faces (just dots for eyes). From “Ambulance,” “Bulldozer,” and “Crane” to “Yacht” and “Zooming Rocket,” the text glossing each moving vehicle emphasizes activities or signature sounds and is typeset in ever larger fonts to lift the excitement. J is for “Jumbo Jet / Enormous jumbo jet / roar, roar, roaring. / Over fields and buildings, / up…up…soaring!” Exemplars that are out of the ordinary include “Narrow Boat” (revealed in the illustration to be a British canal boat), “Quad Bike” (which many American readers will recognize as an ATV), and “Velodrome Track Bike”; X stands for the “EXtra Big Wheels” of a monster truck. San-serif lower- and uppercases are highlighted in the upper corners. There are a few double-page spreads, but most letters have one page with no segues between them. Kids familiar with themed alphabet books and enraptured with toy vehicles will enjoy repeating the sound effects and guessing what vehicle comes next despite the misleading cover that hints that all of the machines dig.
Given the plethora of similar titles, rate this an O for overdone and opt for a better one, such as Ramon Olivera’s ABCs on Wheels (2016). (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 22, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-62779-516-6
Page Count: 34
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: April 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2017
A storytime delight for the nature shelf.
Catchy rhymes describe the cozy spaces 13 animals find, make, and use.
In this companion to Mama Built a Little Nest (2014), Ward and Jenkins introduce a variety of animals who dig, scrape, construct, or adopt a cavity for a wide variety of uses. From the red fox who births and raises her kits in a maternity den to the sea turtle who buries her eggs in the sand, the author has chosen interesting, frequently familiar, animals. A beaver builds a lodge to share with an entire family; a polar bear scoops out a cave in the snow for her cubs; prairie dogs construct huge towns of connected burrows; a tarantula lurks inside a hole waiting for prey to pass by; red and gray squirrels dig holes to store nuts in the ground. Each spread shows an appealing creature, often a family, depicted in the illustrator’s signature collage style. Smoothly constructed quatrains, usually beginning with the title line, introduce each den. (An author’s note points out that she uses the word “Mama” loosely; some dens are constructed by males or by both parents.) On the facing page a short paragraph provides the animal’s name and something about the den’s use. Finally, the implied reader (only legs and boots are shown) is invited to notice interesting holes: “it will make you wonder / who or what might be inside!”
A storytime delight for the nature shelf. (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4814-8037-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018
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