by Michael J. Rosen & illustrated by Mary Azarian ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2011
Rosen last employed this most concentrated of poetic forms to survey all things avian with illustrator Stan Fellows (The...
Pooches large and small, common and rare abound in this glorious collection of haiku.
Rosen last employed this most concentrated of poetic forms to survey all things avian with illustrator Stan Fellows (The Cuckoo’s Haiku and Other Birding Poems, 2009, etc.). Here he joins forces with woodcut master and Caldecott winner Azarian (Snowflake Bentley, with Jacqueline Briggs Martin, 1999) with dazzling results. The well-honed verse captures at once the depth of this potent syllabic form and essence of canine behavior, whether playful or at rest. Combined with woodcuts so intricate they take on an almost-3-D vitality, these portraits depict not only what we love about dogs but what we envy. A telling example is the colorful Old English Sheepdog: “dog day before noon: / cool sun warming your left side / dog day afternoon…” Other snapshots, like the Parson Russell Terrier, “elbow-deep in dirt” with “nothing to bury but hours,” and Miniature Schnauzer, “the one hieroglyph / that appears on all windows: / your nose writing When?” get to the more philosophic character of the species. Throughout, Azarian’s supple illustrations, richly colorful and bursting with texture, draw in young and old, while Rosen’s concluding “Notes for Dog People and Haiku Lovers” includes a wealth of canine trivia.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7636-4499-4
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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by Kate Messner ; illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 13, 2022
More thoughtful, sometimes exhilarating encounters with nature.
In a new entry in the Over and Under series, a paddleboarder glimpses humpback whales leaping, floats over a populous kelp forest, and explores life on a beach and in a tide pool.
In this tale inspired by Messner’s experiences in Monterey Bay in California, a young tan-skinned narrator, along with their light-skinned mom and tan-skinned dad, observes in quiet, lyrical language sights and sounds above and below the sea’s serene surface. Switching perspectives and angles of view and often leaving the family’s red paddleboards just tiny dots bobbing on distant swells, Neal’s broad seascapes depict in precise detail bat stars and anchovies, kelp bass, and sea otters going about their business amid rocky formations and the swaying fronds of kelp…and, further out, graceful moon jellies and—thrillingly—massive whales in open waters beneath gliding pelicans and other shorebirds. After returning to the beach at day’s end to search for shells and to spot anemones and decorator crabs, the child ends with nighttime dreams of stars in the sky meeting stars in the sea. Appended nature notes on kelp and 21 other types of sealife fill in details about patterns and relationships in this rich ecosystem. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
More thoughtful, sometimes exhilarating encounters with nature. (author’s note, further reading) (Informational picture book. 6-9)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-79720-347-8
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
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by Lily Williams ; illustrated by Lily Williams ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 16, 2017
A successful balancing act between heralding disaster and promoting change—an informative debut.
Williams guides readers through the multifarious world of sharks and offers a disconcerting glimpse into our world without them.
For approximately 450 million years, sharks have played a role in balancing our oceans’ ecosystems. Following a young ocean enthusiast of color, the text explains that, as predators at the top of their food chain, sharks help maintain the species below them, as they “typically eat sick, slow, or weak prey,” keeping populations healthy and numbers in check. But due to overfishing and other harmful human impacts, more than one-quarter of shark species are approaching extinction—a threat that not only endangers the aquatic ecosystems of which sharks are a part, but could also “spread like a wave…until animals around the globe are affected.” From the beauty of the great white shark to the easy-to-overlook plankton, the cheery illustrations paired with a gently insistent call to action are all the more haunting when they show the bleak future without sharks. The apocalyptic nature of this very real possibility is offset by Williams’ reminder that, for now, sharks are still here—underscored in a gorgeous vertical gatefold depicting a healthy marine ecosystem—and that by remembering the importance of our planet’s trophic reciprocity, readers can keep it that way. Often directly addressing readers in the text, Williams provides an action checklist and bibliography to get them started.
A successful balancing act between heralding disaster and promoting change—an informative debut. (glossary, notes) (Informational picture book. 5-10)Pub Date: May 16, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-62672-413-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: March 31, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2017
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