nature

Moon Bear

| Tasha

Moon Bear by Brenda Z. Guiberson, illlustrated by Ed Young

Follow a moon bear through a year from one spring to the next.  Each page begins with a question that is then answered through a short verse.  So much of the book, just as with the bear’s life, is taken up with the search for food.  Food that will make children squirm and food that they too would love to find.  Guiberson’s text is more poetry than scientific information, offering readers a beautiful look at a rare creature.  Adding to the beauty of the book are the amazing collage illustrations by Ed Young.

The question and answer format of the text in this book make the book very intriguing and inviting.  The fact that it is verse works very well here, brief condensed verse.  This is certainly a nature picture book but never becomes dry with facts, rather it is an ode to an endangered creature.

Young’s illustrations add an exciting element to the book.  Done in collage, they contain photographs and patterns that keep the eye fascinated.  The illustrations also capture textures, combining them to great effect.  As the book comes full circle, it offers children a treat at the end of the book.  The author’s note at the end contains facts about moon bears as well as photographs of the bears.  To my eye, the ones built out of Young’s collage look even more real and true. 

Highly recommended, this is a celebration of a unique bear that we should all get to know with this unique treatment.  Appropriate for ages 4-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Henry Holt.

How to Clean a Hippopotamus

| Tasha

How to Clean a Hippopotamus by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

A fascinating tour through symbiotic relationships in the animal kingdom, this book uses comic book frames and short text bubbles to become incredibly appealing to reluctant readers.  Filled with Jenkins’ paperwork illustrations that offer clarity beyond that of photographs, this book is a visual treat.  It is also filled with interesting facts, and is sure to surprise even the most informed reader with several of the relationships inside.  Journey through symbiotic relationships where one animal cleans another one to others where enemies become friends and supporters for a time.  Get this one into the hands of children who love animals and struggle with books, they are sure to feel right at home here.

Jenkins’ art is done with such confidence and cleverness.  His use of fuzzy papers to get the feel of fur, of color to get the feel of skin, and of pattern to get the texture right really take him beyond most other paper artists in children’s books today.  The fact that he manages to capture what an animal actually looks like is amazing.  Animals have a light in their eyes, a focus and in this book a relationship with each other, all captured with paper. 

The facts here are done with just the right amount of text and a playful, interested tone.  The book invites readers in and marvels alongside them.  The design here is wonderfully done, breaking what could have been paragraphs of text to wade through into windows of color filled with bite-sized bits of text that get readers wanting more.

Highly recommended, every library needs this book on their shelves.  Guaranteed to go home over and over again.  Appropriate for ages 5-9.

Reviewed from library copy.

Check out another review at A Patchwork of Books.

The Humblebee Hunter

| Tasha

The Humblebee Hunter: Inspired by the Life and Experiments of Charles Darwin and His Children by Deborah Hopkinson, illustrated by Jen Corace

Told from the perspective of Etty, one of Charles Darwin’s daughters, this book is an invitation into the lives of the Darwin family.  Etty does not want to stuck inside with her mother and Cook learning to make honey cake.  She would much rather be outside with her father helping with his scientific observations.  The children grew up asking questions just like their father.  They measured worm holes, experimented with seeds and salt water, counted snakes, and captured moths.  So when her father appeared at the door and asked her to bring out the flour shaker, Etty happily did so.  The question was how many flowers a humblebee would visit in a minute.  The flour would make the bees the children would be observing more easily seen.  And what is the answer to the question?  You will just have to read the book to find out or dust your own humblebee with flour!

I was immediately charmed by the illustrations of this book.  They have an old-fashioned feel merged with a modern edge.  The colors used are vintage and immediately place the story in the correct era, but the illustrations themselves are crisp and add interest.  Hopkinson’s text is equally successful.  The pacing is varied which makes for an interesting read.  From the slow pace when Etty is inside baking and remembering her father’s stories to the brisk pace and excitement of following a bee from flower to flower. 

This book will make every child want to have dust a bee with flour and observe them.  It is a book that has you itching to head outdoors and measure your own worm holes or capture moths.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from library copy.

Also reviewed by Charlotte’s Library.

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Poetrees

| Tasha

Poetrees by Douglas Florian

Florian has turned his poetic talents to trees in this newest collection.  His poems move from the parts of a tree like bark and roots to specific types of trees.  He includes oaks, baobab, Japanese cedar, yews and many more.  In each, he celebrates what makes them unique and special.  He merges puns with poetry, offering a funny twist or humorous phrase.  Florian evokes the essence of trees with ease here.  His forest is one that is definitely worth wandering in.

Florian has also done the art work in this book.  Done with a variety of media on paper bags, they evoke a roughness, a bark and a natural feel that perfect mesh with the poems.  I particularly appreciate that you can see the folds and creases in the bags.  They make you want to run your fingers across the page, only to find them glossy smooth. 

Ideal for Earth Day or Arbor Day, this is a beautiful way to spend time with the trees around us.  Appropriate for ages 5-10.

Reviewed from copy received from Beach Lane Publishers.

Also reviewed by Jama Rattigan’s Alphabet Soup.

All Things Bright and Beautiful

| Tasha

All Things Bright and Beautiful by Ashley Bryan

Renowned illustrator, Ashley Bryan, takes the beloved hymn by Cecil F. Alexander and adds cut-paper illustrations.  Starting with the sun as a Ferris wheel, he creates entire ecosystems in paper.  Readers will see a huge whale, people of every color, fantastically detailed flowers and birds, mountains, rivers, and much more.  This book is a feast for the eye, filled with bright colors and smiling faces. 

This book will work well paired with Bryan’s other book, Let It Shine, which has a similar style.  Bryan did the entire book with his mother’s sewing scissors, as he mentions in the first pages.  This book is a true tribute to the vividness of life, the wonder of our land, and the diversity of our planet.

Highly recommended for every library collection, this book is a feast of color, art and song.  Appropriate for ages 3-6.

Reviewed from copy received from publisher.

Whoo Goes There?

| Tasha

Whoo Goes There? by Jennifer A. Ericsson, illustrated by Bert Kitchen

Everything was dark and quiet.  Owl sat alone on a branch in a tall tree, waiting and watching.  Whenever something rustled, thumped or squeaked, Owl wondered, “Whoo goes there?”  He hoped it was something just right for his dinner.  But each time it was not a fat mouse or squirrel, it was a cat, a skunk or a bat.  Finally, Owl knew it WAS a mouse, and he headed into the darkness to try to catch it.

This book based on a simple premise offers more depth than most repetitive stories.  Here we see nature in action, tension builds with each creature that isn’t edible, and the ending is perfectly satisfying with a touch of humor.  Ericsson’s prose uses the repetition nicely, never becoming sing-songy or dull, but using it instead to create a vivid mood.  Combined with Kitchen’s incredibly lifelike illustrations, this book offers a book that will give children a tingle with no real fear.  Kitchen’s art is beautifully rendered.  He shows the detail of the bark of a tree contrasted with the spines of a porcupine in just one of his masterful images.  Each one is a window into nature and into that creature.

Highly recommended, this is an ideal book for story times with toddlers.  I would consider it for Halloween story times where the children are a bit young for monster books but want a little thrill still.  Appropriate for ages 2-5.

Reviewed from library copy.

In the Belly of an Ox

| Tasha

In the Belly of an Ox: the Unexpected Photographic Adventures of Richard and Cherry Kearton by Rebecca Bond

Two brothers, Richard and Cherry Kearton, grew up in the hills of Yorkshire and spent much of their time outside exploring.  When they both moved to London, they missed the countryside, so they visited it whenever they could.  One visit, Cherry brought his new camera and took a picture of a bird’s nest.  An idea was born!  The brothers decided to take pictures of birds nests using a variety of blinds, disguises and props, including a large bull to hide inside.  It took them three years and 30,000 miles of travel across Britain to make their book.  British Birds’ Nests was published in 1895.  It was the first nature book to be illustrated entirely with photographs. 

This is really the story of two brothers who were willing to work hard, invent their own solutions, and follow their personal dreams.  It is a story of being yourself and finding your own way in life and not listening to what “should” be done.  Make sure to look at the end of the book where you can see some of their photographs.  One is a heart-stopping photo of both brothers high in a tree with a ladder. 

Bond’s text here sets just the right mood.  She and the readers revel in the inventiveness of the brothers and their enthusiasm and hers shine.  Her illustrations have a wonderful vintage feel.  The watercolor landscapes evoke the region nicely and the brothers come through as vibrant characters.

A great piece of picture-book nonfiction, this title is one that should be shared.  It’s a great piece to start conversations about what children are really dreaming of, what their special gifts are, and what they may become someday.  And it just might get indoor children moving outside to take their own pictures and climb their own trees.  What could be better?!  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from library copy.

Yellowstone Moran

| Tasha

Yellowstone Moran: Painting the American West by Lita Judge

Thomas Moran was a painter who lived in the city.  When he met Dr. Hayden, a geologist, who was heading into Yellowstone, he didn’t want to admit that he had never been on a horse, never shot a gun, and never slept outside.  Moran joined the expedition in the summer of 1871 and learned on the trail to ride a horse.  Tom befriended the team photographer on the difficult journey.  After weeks of travel, they entered Yellowstone: a place of sulfur smells, white rock, gorges, waterfalls, and wonder.  Tom painted everything he saw, recording in small paintings and sketches with notes.  When he returned home after a harrowing exit from Yellowstone, he painted large canvases capturing the grandeur of this new landscape.

A delightful mixture of adventure and art, this book will intrigue children interested in both subjects.  Judge uses humor, drama and a great sense of pacing to tell a story that will keep young reader riveted.  Just the idea that the United States had not been fully explored in 1817 will astound some children.  Judge’s paintings that accompany the story offer a sense of the place itself, without attempting to mimic Moran’s style.  The illustrations help create the sense of journey, danger and amazement.

Recommended for art classes, but also as a fascinating biography in picture book form.  Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from copy provided by publisher.

You can check out Lita Judge’s blog to see some of her illustrations in sketch form.

Nonfiction Monday – Life in the Boreal Forest

| Tasha

Life in the Boreal Forest by Brenda Z. Guiberson, illustrations by Gennady Spirin.

Released on September 29, 2009.

This book so clearly captures the beauty and life in the boreal forest that one can almost hear the birds and smell the freshness of the air.  The great northern forest stretches from Alaska and Canada to Scandinavia and Russia Showing the brevity of the northern summer, the activity of the stark winter months, and the glory of the spring and the return of warmth will bring readers face-to-face with nature and its drama.  Spirin’s illustrations show delicate detail, dazzling vistas, and many many animals.  This is a book to sink into, explore and learn.

Guiberson’s text is filled with sounds, from bird calls to wolves howling to smaller noises like hares hopping on snow.  Each sound and its explanation brings this unique ecosystem to life.  Her words create an understanding through the small details of the importance of this forest for all of us.  Spirin excels as capturing animals with their small details and yet showing the forest itself as more than a background, as a living thing.  Her art is large and breathtaking even while the details are shown.

Highly recommended, this book is a great nature book for children.  For children in the north, this book is like coming home.  For everyone it is important to see forests celebrated in this way.  Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from copy received from Henry Holt.