Nature offers up marvelous surprises at every turn—even via a humble puddle teeming with life.
Who knew there was so much to see and hear in a puddle?
Two Asian-presenting siblings visit a vernal pool in “the deep, damp forest” through the seasons and are awestruck by the natural wonders they discover. What’s a vernal pool, you ask? As the author’s note explains, it’s a wetland habitat that forms “in shallow dips in the land,” in places with seasonal climates; such areas shelter a variety of plants and animal species throughout the year. In short, over the course of a year, a vernal pool is a busy, noisy circle of life. The children share their finds in lilting verse, and readers will be delighted at these wondrous explorations. Look at some of what the kids find in and around this astonishing place when they return season after season: frogs and toads, ducks, shrimp, salamanders, turtles, butterflies, foxes, deer—and much more! The gorgeous, textured, naturalistic, collagelike artwork bursts with life and realistic colors, and readers will enjoy closely examining the illustrations as animals and plants are enumerated; a chart at the end of the book helps readers identify the wildlife in this beautifully realized story. Grown-ups may wish to help curious readers investigate whether there are vernal pools near where they live.
Nature offers up marvelous surprises at every turn—even via a humble puddle teeming with life. (Informational picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: March 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781771475310
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Owlkids Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
Though told by two outsiders to the culture, this timely and well-crafted story will educate readers on the preciousness of...
An international story tackles a serious global issue with Reynolds’ characteristic visual whimsy.
Gie Gie—aka Princess Gie Gie—lives with her parents in Burkina Faso. In her kingdom under “the African sky, so wild and so close,” she can tame wild dogs with her song and make grass sway, but despite grand attempts, she can neither bring the water closer to home nor make it clean. French words such as “maintenant!” (now!) and “maman” (mother) and local color like the karite tree and shea nuts place the story in a French-speaking African country. Every morning, Gie Gie and her mother perch rings of cloth and large clay pots on their heads and walk miles to the nearest well to fetch murky, brown water. The story is inspired by model Georgie Badiel, who founded the Georgie Badiel Foundation to make clean water accessible to West Africans. The details in Reynolds’ expressive illustrations highlight the beauty of the West African landscape and of Princess Gie Gie, with her cornrowed and beaded hair, but will also help readers understand that everyone needs clean water—from the children of Burkina Faso to the children of Flint, Michigan.
Though told by two outsiders to the culture, this timely and well-crafted story will educate readers on the preciousness of potable water. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-17258-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
Earnest and silly by turns, it doesn’t quite capture the attention or the imagination, although surely its heart is in the...
Rhymed couplets convey the story of a girl who likes to build things but is shy about it. Neither the poetry nor Rosie’s projects always work well.
Rosie picks up trash and oddments where she finds them, stashing them in her attic room to work on at night. Once, she made a hat for her favorite zookeeper uncle to keep pythons away, and he laughed so hard that she never made anything publicly again. But when her great-great-aunt Rose comes to visit and reminds Rosie of her own past building airplanes, she expresses her regret that she still has not had the chance to fly. Great-great-aunt Rose is visibly modeled on Rosie the Riveter, the iconic, red-bandanna–wearing poster woman from World War II. Rosie decides to build a flying machine and does so (it’s a heli-o-cheese-copter), but it fails. She’s just about to swear off making stuff forever when Aunt Rose congratulates her on her failure; now she can go on to try again. Rosie wears her hair swooped over one eye (just like great-great-aunt Rose), and other figures have exaggerated hairdos, tiny feet and elongated or greatly rounded bodies. The detritus of Rosie’s collections is fascinating, from broken dolls and stuffed animals to nails, tools, pencils, old lamps and possibly an erector set. And cheddar-cheese spray.
Earnest and silly by turns, it doesn’t quite capture the attention or the imagination, although surely its heart is in the right place. (historical note) (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4197-0845-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2013
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