This picture book and its lyrical text will make readers see fishes in unexpected places.
A short rhyming tale merges nature and debris to create art from remains of rainy days.
When the day turns gray and rain starts to fall, “that’s when rain fish come out and play.” From found materials (fallen leaves and feathers and items clearly plucked from the recycling bucket and waste stream), images of fishes are created and depicted at play in the flowing gutters. Through Ehlert’s distinctive collage illustrations and playful text, readers follow the life cycle of rain fishes and are encouraged to wonder where these fishes will go next. The book invites children to look closely at the waste they discard, prompting them to consider how orange peels, ticket stubs, cardboard, bottle caps, cans, and other garbage make their way to the stream—both the waste stream and Ehlert’s fanciful rain-fed stream—and the role of humans in their creation. The collage illustrations of found materials are vivid, although they need to be seen from a distance for readers to truly appreciate them and see the rain fishes, making this ideal for storytime or classroom use. A list of images of discards and debris that were used for the illustrations is appended and should be useful for craft activities after a read-aloud of the book.
This picture book and its lyrical text will make readers see fishes in unexpected places. (author’s note) (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 26, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-6152-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2016
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A good bet for the youngest bird-watchers.
Echoing the meter of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” Ward uses catchy original rhymes to describe the variety of nests birds create.
Each sweet stanza is complemented by a factual, engaging description of the nesting habits of each bird. Some of the notes are intriguing, such as the fact that the hummingbird uses flexible spider web to construct its cup-shaped nest so the nest will stretch as the chicks grow. An especially endearing nesting behavior is that of the emperor penguin, who, with unbelievable patience, incubates the egg between his tummy and his feet for up to 60 days. The author clearly feels a mission to impart her extensive knowledge of birds and bird behavior to the very young, and she’s found an appealing and attractive way to accomplish this. The simple rhymes on the left page of each spread, written from the young bird’s perspective, will appeal to younger children, and the notes on the right-hand page of each spread provide more complex factual information that will help parents answer further questions and satisfy the curiosity of older children. Jenkins’ accomplished collage illustrations of common bird species—woodpecker, hummingbird, cowbird, emperor penguin, eagle, owl, wren—as well as exotics, such as flamingoes and hornbills, are characteristically naturalistic and accurate in detail.
A good bet for the youngest bird-watchers. (author’s note, further resources) (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 18, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4424-2116-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2014
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