Synopses & Reviews
From the creators of the Caldecott Honor Book
Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems comes a celebration of ubiquitous life forms among us. Newbery Honor-winning poet Joyce Sidman presents another unusual blend of fine poetry and fascinating science illustrated in exquisite hand-colored linocuts by Caldecott Honor artist Beckie Prange.
Ubiquitous (yoo-bik-wi-tuhs): Something that is (or seems to be) everywhere at the same time.
Why is the beetle, born 265 million years ago, still with us today? (Because its wings mutated and hardened). How did the gecko survive 160 million years? (By becoming nocturnal and developing sticky toe pads.) How did the shark and the crow and the tiny ant survive millions and millions of years? When 99 percent of all life forms on earth have become extinct, why do some survive? And survive not just in one place, but in many places: in deserts, in ice, in lakes and puddles, inside houses and forest and farmland? Just how do they become ubiquitous?
Review
"The creators of the Caldecott Honor Book Song of the Waterboatman and Other Pond Poems (2005) offer another winning blend of poetry, science, and art in this picture-book collection that celebrates the Earthand#8217;s most resilient and long-lived species."and#8212;
Booklist, starred review and#160; "The team behind the Caldecott-Honor winning
Song of the Water Boatman pays tribute to biologically successful speciesand#8212;from mollusks and lichens to dandelions and sharksand#8212;in poems that appear in order of each animal's first appearance on earth (a striking, mazelike time line puts the billions of years into perspective)...Fascinating factual information appears on each page; the graceful integration of science and art results in a celebratory story of survival."and#8212;
Publishers Weekly, starred review and#160; "This volume of beautifully illustrated poems investigates the natural world, from the single-celled bacteria and diatom to the ever-present ant and dandelion. Well-researched science facts are paired with vivid poems to describe how these very special life-forms avoided extinction to become natureand#8217;s survivors...From the depiction of ant tunnels to the surprising perspective of blades of grass, the bold and colorful linocuts are incredibly detailed and successfully capture the essence of each creature as part of its larger environment. A delightful feast for the eyes, ears, and mind."and#8212;
School Library Journal, starred review and#160; "Sidman delights with another gorgeous collection of poems celebrating the natural world, this time focusing on species remarkable for their ability to adapt and thrive in an often-harsh world...The text is accompanied and frequently surrounded by Prangeand#8217;s arresting linocuts hand-colored with watercolor. Vibrant and compelling, the illustrations help create and sustain the sense of wonder that makes this collection truly special. Occupying the endpapers is an eye-opening timeline that marks the appearance of each species on a coiled string that strikingly dramatizes the long march of life on Earth. Lovely."and#8212;
Kirkus, starred review and#160; "From the creators of
Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems (rev. 5/05), fourteen additional deft poems extended by background information and entrancing illustrations...Prange drenches her bold linocuts in vivid watercolor-the translucent underside of a wave, a gorgeous sunset over a pack of ever-more-ubiquitous coyotes. She's master of both the precisely observed (dandelions from bud to seeds aloft) and the accurate impression (crows conversing)."and#8212;
Horn Book,
starred review
"It's a true collaboration. There's a back and forth to this book that you don't always feel in collections of poetry....It's certainly a beautiful book....Hold on to it."and#8212;Betsy Bird, Fuse #8 and#160;
Review
Praise for TADPOLE REX Oprah's Book Club - Kids' Reading List
Children's Book of the Month Club "The swampy greens and hard edges of the digitally colored scratchboard artwork suit the prehistoric period and rough scales of the dinosaurs perfectly, while the varying scale of the illustrations will keep readers on their toes--Cyrus is a master of the extreme close-up. Readers will thrill to the action and suspense while teachers will appreciate the subtle lesson on the life cycle of frogs." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review "The rhyming text is image-rich, informational, and fun to read aloud. . . . Cyrus's oversize artwork conveys information spectacularly, beginning with a dramatic wrap-around cover and continuing with interesting perspectives of dinosaurs and the prehistoric environment. Created in scratchboard and then colored digitally, the illustrations are luminous and striking. . . . This is an exciting blend of science and literature that children will appreciate." --School Library Journal, starred review
Review
"This subtly philosophical examination of time, scale, and the mechanics of life is all but certain to leave readers reconsidering the world and their place in it."and#8212; Publishers Weekly, starred review "This is a fascinatingly different way to approach natural history as well as time..."and#8212; Bulletin "Jenkins renders this package both eye-catching and mind boggling. Teachers will find good jumping-off points here for math, science, and history discussions."and#8212; School Library Journal, starred review
Review
"Like its subject, the rhymed text moves with grand deliberation, carrying the primeval story line to a clever transition between that ancient era and ours....Never has time travel been so easy or so immersive."and#8212;Kirkus Reviews, starred review
"In this companion to Tadpole Rex, a prehistoric turtle hatches on a 'primeval beach' and slips beneath the waves. Cyrus's illustrations incorporate dramatic scale, movement, and majesty: the spreads are a marvel of lighting and textureand#8230; A moving and truly epic journey."."and#8212;Publishers Weekly, starred review
"The book will hook insatiable young dinosaur fanatics looking for readable, factual stories."and#8212;School Library Journal, starred review
Review
"Fun and very educational."
and#8212;Booklist
"[A] handsome examination of child-rearing across the animal kingdom."
and#8212;Publishers Weekly
"Jenkins and Page's simple text effectively highlights the differing degrees of independence of a variety of species' young."
and#8212;Horn Book
"Jenkins and Page find yet another inviting way to connect young human readers and listeners to creatures who share their world . . . Appealing to a wide age range, this is another crowd pleaser."
and#8212;Kirkus
"The striking depictions of mother and child set against full-bleed colored backgrounds or clean white space should make for many return readings."
and#8212;School Library Journal, starred review
"The style would work as an easy read as well as a readaloud."
and#8212;The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
"Jenkins's masterly paper collages achieve their usual high standards of zoological accuracy and beauty. The text is shrewdly written in the first-person voice of each baby animal, mingling personality with scientific fact."
and#8212;New York Times Online
Synopsis
Sploosh! Fizz! Swish! The prehistoric ocean isand#160;a dangerousand#160;place for a baby sea turtle. But after sheand#160;emerges from her egg, the treacherous waters are her goal. Swimming through the swirling waves and dodging larger sea creatures, she finds a resting place deep below. There she waits, until she grows into the majestic sea turtle that returns to the sand to lay her eggs and begin the cycle again.
This journey of a small creature in the oceanic world of the dinosaursand#160;is a perfect mix of scientific integrity and dramatic storytelling.
Synopsis
and#160;This non-fiction picture book explores time and how we think about it in a different way - as a series of events in the natural world (some of them directly observable, others not) that take place in a given unit of time. Steve Jenkins' extraordinary illustrations will accompany this engaging look at time. and#160;
Just a Secondis visualized as a linear series of illustrations and captions, starting with a second, a minute, an hour, a month, and a year. and#160; What happens in a second?
A gnat beats its wings 1000 times.
A hummingbird beats its wings 75 times.
A shrew's heart beats 13 times.
A bat squeaks and listens for an echo 10 times.
A dropped stone falls 16 feet.
Earth travels 18 miles in its trip around the sun.
A cheetah can run 100 feet. and#160;
Synopsis
Award-winning poet Joyce Sidman presents another unusual blend of fine poetry and fascinating science - illustrated in full-color throughout.
Synopsis
Newbery Honor-winning poet Joyce Sidman presents another unusual blend of fine poetry and fascinating science celebrating ubiquitous life forms among us. Illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Beckie Prange in exquisite hand-colored linocuts.
Synopsis
Why be afraid of the dark when there is so much to see? W.H. Beck brings the glowing world of bioluminescence to light in this young non-fiction picture book illustrated with stunning photographs.
Synopsis
Why be afraid of the dark when there is so much to see? Whether itandrsquo;s used to hunt, hide, find a friend, or escape an enemy, bioluminescenceandmdash;the ability to glowandmdash;is a unique adaptation in nature. In this fun and fascinating nonfiction picture book, join world-renowned photographers and biologists on their close encounters with the curious creatures that make their own light. Authorandrsquo;s note and bibliography included.
Synopsis
What can happen in just a second,
a minute, or an hour? How can we measure time?
The flap of a vultureand#8217;s wing.
A crocodileand#8217;s heartbeat.
The weight of a baby blue whale.
The life of a mayfly.
These increments of time may sound a bit strange, but they are all fascinating ways in which we can think about time.
But what exactly is time?
In Just a Second, the award-winning author-illustrator Steve Jenkins brings forth unique ways to think about time beyond the hands we see every day on a ticking clock. and#160; and#160;This non-fiction picture book explores time and how we think about it in a different way - as a series of events in the natural world (some of them directly observable, others not) that take place in a given unit of time. Steve Jenkins' extraordinary illustrations will accompany this engaging look at time.
Synopsis
What did you do on the day you were born? This book looks at what a variety of creatures can accomplish within 24 hours of being born.
Synopsis
The first day of life is different for every animal. Human newborns donand#8217;t do much at all, but some animals hit the ground running. The Caldecott Honorand#8211;winning team Steve Jenkins and Robin Page apply their considerable talents to revealing howand#160;twenty twoand#160;different species, from the emperor penguin to the Siberian tiger, adapt to that traumatic first few hours of life, with or without parental help. Jenkinsand#8217;s vividly colorful cut-paper illustrations are eye-poppingly three-dimensional and as exquisite as ever. While the text is short and sweet, an illustrated guide provides descriptions of theand#160;twenty twoand#160;animals in the back. Fantastic!
About the Author
Sploosh! Fizz! Swish!The prehistoric ocean isand#160;a dangerousand#160;place for a baby sea turtle. But after sheand#160;emerges from her egg, the treacherous waters are her goal. Swimming through the swirling waves and dodging larger sea creatures, she finds a resting place deep below. There she waits, until she grows into the majestic sea turtle that returns to the sand to lay her eggs and begin the cycle again.
This journey of a small creature in the oceanic world of the dinosaursand#160;is a perfect mix of scientific integrity and dramatic storytelling.
"Like its subject, the rhymed text moves with grand deliberation, carrying the primeval story line to a clever transition between that ancient era and ours....Never has time travel been so easy or so immersive."and#8212;Kirkus Reviews,starred review
Praise for TADPOLE REX Oprah's Book Cluband#8212;Kids' Reading Listand#160;
Children's Book of the Month Club "The swampy greens and hard edges of the digitally colored scratchboard artwork suit the prehistoric period and rough scales of the dinosaurs perfectly, while the varying scale of the illustrations will keep readers on their toesand#8212;Cyrus is a master of the extreme close-up. Readers will thrill to the action and suspense while teachers will appreciate the subtle lesson on the life cycle of frogs." and#8212;Kirkus Reviews,starred review "The rhyming text is image-rich, informational, and fun to read aloud. . . . Cyrus's oversize artwork conveys information spectacularly, beginning with a dramatic wrap-around cover and continuing with interesting perspectives of dinosaurs and the prehistoric environment. Created in scratchboard and then colored digitally, the illustrations are luminous and striking. . . . This is an exciting blend of science and literature that children will appreciate."and#8212;School Library Journal,starred review
Kurt Cyrus is a poet, writer, and the illustrator of nearly twenty books, many of which he also wrote, among themTadpole Rex, Oddhopper Opera,and#160;andHotel Deep.and#160;He lives near Eugene, Oregon. www.kurtcyrus.com