Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
I chose to read Gay-Neck: The Story of a Pigeon by Dhan Gopal Mukerji (written 1927) a few years ago because it caught my eye (see my initial review). I had new insights as I reread it this month in the context of the Newbery Medal winners and honors from the first decade of the
The nonfiction picture book We Are Starlings by Robert Furrow and Donna Jo Napoli, illustrated by Marc Martin (Random House, May 2023), invites readers into the mesmerizing world of a starling murmuration. Watercolor, pencil, and digital collage illustrations give a delicate balance between misty-edged watercolor plants and animals and the defined edges of closer birds.
Once, a Bird by by Rina Singh and Nathalie Dion (Orca Book Publishers, September 2023) is a gorgeously illustrated wordless picture book that takes readers on a journey through the eyes of a bird in search of a place to settle and build a nest. The watercolor and gouache illustrations capture the bird’s perspective as it
As the title indicates, How Birds Sleep by David Obuchowski, illustrated by Sarah Pedry (mineditionUS, March 2023) teaches how nearly two dozen bird species sleep. The tone of the text sounds like a bedtime book, and it has a frame of a barn owl waking just as the animals are ready for sleep. Then, at
Whose Egg is That? by Darrin Lunde, illustrated by Karen Oseid (Charlesbridge, January 2023), is the perfect guessing book for a young reader learning about animals. I almost wrote “birds,” but since this book includes the platypus, labeling this a “bird book” would not be accurate! Only a few animals are covered, but it is
My older child (age 5) finally has an interest in some of my favorite picture books, ones that I’ve been hoping he’d like for years. One is Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey (1941). He finally appreciates it! I think the story of Make Way for Ducklings is fantastic. The personalities assigned to the
Falcon by Tim Jessell (Random House, 2012) brings to life a dream many share: what would it be like to fly. In Tim Jessell’s lavishly illustrated paintings, the reader sees a falcon soaring over the waves, the mountains, and then the tall buildings of a city. In his story, a young boy dreams that he
No Two Alike by Keith Baker (Beach Lane Books, 2011) celebrates the uniqueness of winter with gorgeous digital paintings of two birds enjoying nature. The text is rhythmic and rhyming, and provides a gentle framework for the how nothing is completely alike – snowflakes, fences, trees. The ultimate conclusion is that the birds are similar
My son has been quite interested in maps and geography, so (even with the arrival of my newborn five weeks ago) we began a project of studying the continents, starting with Antarctica. Learning about the continent with a four-year-old prompted me to learn more myself: a few months ago, I posted about a Sally Walker
Thunder Birds: Nature’s Flying Predators by Jim Arnosky (Sterling, 2011) is simply a masterpiece of a picture book for the older child. With gorgeous fold-out illustrations done in acrylic paints, pencil, and chalk, Arnosky brings to life the majestic predatory birds of America, from Bald Eagles and vultures to pelicans and herons. His text also does justice
Bring On the Birds by Susan Stockdale (Peachtree, 2011) is a sparsely worded picture book for the youngest of readers, this time showing a variety of birds in their natural habitats. A distinctive characteristic is noted for each bird, from the “swooping” owls to the “birds with tails held high” (the Indian peafowl or peacock, which was
The Ugly Duckling illustrated by Jerry Pinkney, with Hans Christian Andersen’s text adapted by Jerry Pinkney (Caldecott Honor 2000), is a picture book with sprawling, all-encompassing detailed watercolors. The illustrations do the traditional, familiar story justice. Pinkney does an incredible job of getting in to detailed “close-ups” of the scenes. From the birth of the ducklings
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