Synopses & Reviews
Calvin is one unusual starling! While his siblings and cousins learn to fly, this rare bird lets his imagination soar while reading about pirates, dinosaurs, and other fascinating things. The other birds call him and#8220;geeky beaky,and#8221; but Calvin just ruffles his feathers and buries his beak in a book. Yet, when it comes time to migrate, poor Calvin suddenly realizes he can't fly! His sisters, brothers, and cousins carry him into the air. But on their way south, the winds blow hard, the trees bend, and the air starts to smell strange. It's a hurricane, and only Calvin can save the dayand#8212;because he has read all about it!and#160;Witty illustrations, an endearing hero, and a delightful storyand#8212;now new in paperbackand#8212;make this a true celebration of the pleasures (and importance) of reading!
Review
"The irresistible story of a proud bookworm will put smiles on the faces of readers of all ages. Calvin is a young starling with a huge family. While his brothers, sisters and 67,432 cousins are off discovering nature and learning to fly, Calvin is content to keep his beak in a good bookbooks will take him places his wings never could, after all. When the season changes and it is time to migrate, Calvin realizes he was too busy learning...to learn how to fly! His loving family find a way to bring him along, but they run into treacherous weather along their journey. Luckily, Calvin has read just what to do and saves his entire flock. The illustrations are wildly original and full of funny details (check out the highly technical flight classes and the cows' lipstick). With their stick legs, flat heads and fluffy hair(s), the starlings are endearingly comical. Between its heartwarming (but never treacly) story and quirky illustrations, this tale should be a staple among book-loving families as well as in libraries and elementary classrooms for years to come." --Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
Review
Praise for Calvin Can't Fly!"The irresistible story . . . will put smiles on the faces of readers of all ages . . . The illustrations are wildly original and full of funny details . . . With their stick legs, flat heads and fluffy hair(s), the starlings are endearingly comical. Between its heartwarming (but never treacly) story and quirky illustrations, this tale should be a staple among book-loving families as well as in libraries and elementary classrooms for years to come." and#8212;Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)
Review
"The irresistible story of a proud bookworm will put smiles on the faces of readers of all ages. Calvin is a young starling with a huge family. While his brothers, sisters and 67,432 cousins are off discovering nature and learning to fly, Calvin is content to keep his beak in a good bookand#8212;books will take him places his wings never could, after all. When the season changes and it is time to migrate, Calvin realizes he was too busy learning...to learn how to fly! His loving family find a way to bring him along, but they run into treacherous weather along their journey. Luckily, Calvin has read just what to do and saves his entire flock. The illustrations are wildly original and full of funny details (check out the highly technical flight classes and the cows' lipstick). With their stick legs, flat heads and fluffy hair(s), the starlings are endearingly comical. Between its heartwarming (but never treacly) story and quirky illustrations, this tale should be a staple among book-loving families as well as in libraries and elementary classrooms for years to come." --Kirkus Reviews, Starred Reviewand#160;"In a lively children's book debut, Bendis contributes gouache cartoons that bring action and droll wit to Berne's (Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau) story about valuable experiences to be found both inside and outside books. Young starling Calvinand#8212;humorously depicted as a squarish, wide-eyed bird with long, spindly legsand#8212;is a loner. While his seven siblings and more than 67,000 cousins ('Starlings have big families') learn how to fly, Calvin spends his days reading. Hurt by taunts of 'nerdy birdie' and 'geeky beaky,' the book lover waddles to the library, 'the only place where he was happy.' When it's time to head south for the winter and Calvin still doesn't know how to fly, the other starlings gamely tie strings to him to tow him along. An approaching hurricane gives Calvin a chance to show off his book smarts ('We need to get out of the path of a violent, tropical weather system, which... will not diminish until it encounters large stretches of landmass!'). Regular doses of humor in the text and art happily keep the story from migrating into sentimentality. - Publisher's Weekly
Review
*"The irresistible story of a proud bookworm will put smiles on the faces of readers of all ages . . . The illustrations are wildly original and full of funny details . . . Between its heartwarming (but never treacly) story and quirky illustrations, this tale should be a staple among book-loving families as well as in libraries and elementary classrooms for years to come." and#8212;
Kirkus Reviews, starred reviewand#160;". . . a lively children's book debut . . . Regular doses of humor in the text and art happily keep the story from migrating into sentimentality." and#8212;
Publishers WeeklyReview
and#8220;Author Jennifer Berne spins a lyrical poem playing on the natural world of sleep in the animal kingdom to soothe a child into restfulness (a much-needed state in this, our over-stimulated world).and#8221; and#8212;Ed Young, Caldecott Medal-winning author and illustratorand#160;and#8220;Jennifer Berne, in her third children's book, has created a timeless bedtime classic. Good Night Moon now has a bedtime buddy.and#8221; and#8212;Mike Thaler, bestselling author of the Black Lagoon Adventures seriesand#160;"Jennifer Berne's words soar along with David Walker's illustrations in this good night story about animal bedtimes around the world. With its hypnotic rhyme and memorable refrain, it's destined for everyone's read-it-again list.and#8221; and#8212;Freddi Greenberg, editor-in-chief of Nickelodeon/Nick Jr. Family Magazine
Synopsis
Calvin is one unusual starling. While his siblings and cousins learn to fly, this rare bird lets his imagination soar while reading about pirates, dinosaurs, and other fascinating things. Soon, Calvin saves the day because of what he's read in a book. Full color.
Synopsis
Everybody's favorite bookworm birdie is backand#8212;and something's wrong! When Calvin reads the word and#8220;wagons,and#8220; he sees and#8220;dragonsand#8221; instead, and he's tripping over the library chairs. Calvin needs glasses! When his family checks out the new specs, though, they just tease him. Poor Calvin. But when he gets lost and trapped in the forest, it's Calvin's glasses (and smarts) that save the day. Soon EVERYONE thinks glasses are greatand#8212;and Calvin's clan becomes the coolest flock of starlings in the sky.
Synopsis
While his siblings and cousins all learn to fly, Calvin lets his imagination soar by burying his beak in a book instead. Unfortunately, when itand#39;s time to migrate, the land-bound andquot;geeky beakyandquot; realizes his family will have to carry him. Then, on their way south, they run into a hurricaneandmdash;and only Calvin, with his book learning, can save the day! A true celebration of the joy of reading.
Synopsis
While his siblings and cousins learn to fly, Calvin lets his imagination soar by burying his beak in a book. The others call him and#8220;geeky beaky,and#8221; but he just ruffles his feathers. When it comes time to migrate, Calvin realizes he canand#8217;t fly and his family has to carry him. But on their way south, they fly into a hurricane and only Calvin can save the dayand#8212;because he has read about it! A true celebration of the pleasure of reading.
Synopsis
Say and#8220;nighty-nightand#8221;and#8212;it's animal bedtime around the world! From the moose in Maine to a Bahama iguana, from Australian kangaroos to pandas in China, sleepy creatures everywhere are ready to rest under blankets of stars. But before they drift into dreams, they send a special kiss to an adorable childand#8212;and#8220;YOUand#8221;and#8212;curling up in bed, too. Written in lyrical, soothing rhyme, this endearing bedtime story will lull youngsters to sweet dreamland.
Synopsis
What is andquot;normal?andquot; Thatand#39;s the question an eager young scientist, narrating her very first book, hopes to answer. Unfortunately, her
exceedingly andquot;normalandquot; subjectandmdash;an orangutan named Normanandmdash;turns out to be exceptionally strange. He speaks English, sleeps in a bed, loves his stuffed toy, goes bananas over pizza, and even deep-sea dives! Oh, no: whatand#39;s a andquot;normalandquot; scientist to do? A humorous look at the wackiness that makes us all specialandmdash; and a gentle reminder that andquot;normalandquot; canand#39;t ever be defined!
Synopsis
When a giant hand scoops up her mama, Teeny the tiny toad hops like lightning to her big brothers: andquot;Mamaandrsquo;s stuck inside a bucket! Help!andrdquo; andldquo;Donandrsquo;t you worry, kid. Weandrsquo;ll save her!andrdquo; the boys promise. But as the brothers bumble and stumble to the rescue, it becomes clear: brawn canand#39;t always beat brains, and the smallest girl may be the smartest of all.
Synopsis
When a giant hand scoops up her mama and puts her in a pail, a terrified tiny toad named Teeny hops faster than she ever did in her life. andquot;Mamaandrsquo;s stuck inside a bucket! Help me get her out!andrdquo; she begs her big, clumsy brothers. andldquo;Donandrsquo;t you worry, kid. Weandrsquo;ll save her!andrdquo; they promise, bumbling and stumbling and jumbling out the door. But as the boys rush headlong to the rescue, pushing their little sister aside, it becomes clear: brawn isnand#39;t always better than brainsandmdash;and the smallest of the family may just be the smartest one of all.and#160; Written in lilting verse, this teeny book packs in humor, emotion, and triumphant girl power.
Synopsis
Bertie the birdie knows: heand#39;s ready to fly from the nest and into the sky. But whenever heand#39;s about to take wing, his fellow feathered friends squawk at him to STOP and follow their advice instead. But not one of these andldquo;expertsandrdquo;andmdash;the persuasive penguin, the emu, or the kiwiandmdash;has ever actually flown! Will Bertie learn to trust his own instincts . . . and soar?
About the Author
Before she became an author, Leslie Gorin taught on a Navajo reservation and attended film school to become an animator. But she preferred writing, and her stories and articles have appeared in such places as
Highlights for Children, Spider, Hopscotch, National Public Radio, and the anthologyand#160;
New Mitzvah Stories for the Whole Family (Reclaiming Judaism). Her awards include a Disney Fellowship, a Luce Scholarship, a grant from the
Highlights Foundation, and Runner-up for the 2014 SCBWI Barbara Karlin Work-in-Progress grant for picture book texts. Leslie lives in Eagle, ID. Learn more about her at lesliegorin.com.
and#160;
Brendan Kearney began by studying architecture, but now specializes in childrenand#39;s books, bringing his own chaotic style and ideas to any project. His books include Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast, written by Josh Funk (Sterling), 100 Facts Around Town (Egmont UK), and Leif Frond, written by Joan Lennon (Bloomsbury). Brendan currently lives in the UK. Learn more about him at brendankearneyillustration.co.uk.