Through The Four

For those fortunate enough to live in an area experiencing all four seasons, in the northern hemisphere spring seems to have finally arrived.  There have been several mornings in the last ten days without frost on rooftops.  Grass is greening and growing. Tiny buds are appearing on shrubs and trees.  Shoots are pushing through the soil in gardens and forest floors.  The first flowers of spring from bulbs like daffodils, hyacinths, tulips, or crocus are blooming.  The birds are back with all their various melodies.  The sun is rising earlier and setting later.  And we are experiencing warmer than normal temperatures.

All living things are embracing this change.  People of all ages are outside biking, walking, and working in their yards and gardens.  You can hear the sound of children talking and laughing as they ride their scooters or shoot basketballs at a neighbor's hoop.  A wonderful new title to help us enjoy this spring and the other three seasons is My Big Book Of Outdoors (Candlewick Studio, an imprint of Candlewick Press, March 29, 2022) written and illustrated by Tim Hopgood.  It is a lively look at spring, summer, fall, and winter and all each season has to offer.

On the title page, beneath the title text it reads:

Welcome! In every season, there is something different to see, discover, make, and do.  So step outdoors and into nature.

Following the title page, two pages are dedicated to an extensive table of contents with page numbers.  For each season's introduction a double-page picture provides a place for listing, on the left, six phrases, observations about that season.  The next two pages are devoted to 

Signs Of_________.

 

For those up at sunrise in the spring, we are given descriptions of six birds we might see or hear.  We are asked to notice birds building nests.  This is followed by an activity where we can create our own nest out of chocolate.  (Yum!)  Eggs and feathers of birds are later discussed.

We explore bugs, building a bug hotel, soil we can see and soil we can't see.  Do you know how a tadpole becomes a frog?  Can you tell the difference between a frog and a toad? Have you ever been pond dipping?

During summer, the insect populations explode.  We are given pictures of fifteen insects with their names.  How many have you seen?  Do you know how an egg turns into a butterfly?  You can enjoy painting your own butterfly before eight butterflies are displayed and identified.

Bees and their purpose are disclosed.  Dandelions, sunflowers, and daisies are a part of our explorations and things to do.  Fruits and vegetables of summer are portrayed and labeled.  For those near an ocean or sea or those who make a trip to either, what can you discover in a tide pool or along the sandy shore?

The signs of autumn most visible are the changing colors of leaves.  We can still distinguish between eight leaves by their shapes.  Trees shed seeds which the fall winds carry.  (Our area has a gazillion maple seeds now sprouting in lawns and gardens.)  Squirrels are getting ready for winter building shelters and storing food.  We are presented with two thoughtful pages on the power of a single acorn.  

Fruit is being harvested and used in delicious recipes like baked apples.  How many apples can you name?  If you look to the skies you can see birds leaving on their annual migration routes and cloud formations predicting the weather.

As the chill of winter descends, some birds stay the course.  Which ones of those shown are in your area?  Winter walks in snow reveal tracks of wild travelers.  I spy deer and rabbit prints of the six shown.  Two pages show a dormouse and a hedgehog hibernating.  Some facts about each are shared.

Do you know the name of trees which retain their leaves regardless of the season? Five conifers are represented as well as seven different pine cones.  Did you know pine cones are natural humidity detectors? Four pages speak about snow and snowflakes along with an activity.  To close out the section on winter we look to the skies again, studying stars and the phases of the moon.

The enthusiasm Tim Hopgood has for this subject is evident in every chosen word and every written sentence.  Although the specific topics covered in each season vary, their presentation is similar enough to create a pleasing and welcoming rhythm for readers.  There are the previously mentioned introductory phrases, the signs of pages, topics and matching activities and several poems.  These are woven together seamlessly in each season through informal and informational conversations and abundant labeling.  Here is a passage and a poem.

Cool Places

Stones block out wind and

sunshine and keep the ground

cool, dark, and damp---the

perfect place for insects to

live.  Insects with hard shells

can push under stones to find

food and shelter.

Splish Splash!

Plip

plop

plip-plip-plop

pitter-patter

pitter-patter

drip, drop

splash!

Pitter-patter

pitter-patter

drip, drop

splash!

Drip-drop

drip-drop

drip

drip

stop!

The bright turquoise blue sky stretches from flap edge to flap edge on the open dust jacket.  Swirls of startling white clouds are spread across that sky.  The vivid splashes of color seen in the insects and flowers (butterfly on the right and ladybug on the left) also extend to the flap edges.  The ladybug on the left is flying above a large, colorful cluster of flowers.  The ISBN is placed in the center of a white flower.  The title text is varnished.

On the book case it is as if we are looking at a natural exhibit.  The background is dark in hues of blue and green and black.  From left to right on the open case, we are presented with an egg, ladybug, snowdrops, sea creatures, leaves, a butterfly, an acorn, a feather, a snowflake, a mushroom, a pinecone, a moth, a snail, worms, and another kind of nut.  The ISBN is placed inside a white leaf.

On the opening and closing endpapers, on a canvas of pristine white, is a close-up of a honey bee.  It is flying over a gorgeous array of flowers.  They are turquoise, pink, white and yellow, orange, and yellow.  Bits of green appear toward the bottom.  On the verso and title pages is a two-page image.  It is a close-up of grasses and a leaf.  Featured are a snail, an ant, a ladybug, and a caterpillar.  The dedication reads:

For everyone who stayed

indoors in 2020

Using 

mixed media

every page turn depicts either a two-page picture or a single-page visual.  Tim Hopgood takes us close to a topic such as his conversation about ants.  Here we are viewing their activities via a cross-section.  In support of a sentence and a question in the section about fall, we are privy to a forest landscape.  Many different types of flora and fauna are present in this vista done in warm shades of autumn.

One of my many favorite illustrations is for the Signs of Winter section.  It is a two-page picture.  There are white and black silhouettes.  Evergreen boughs, tree trunks, shrubs, and spider webs are in frosty white.  There are several black tree trunks.  On the left side is a winter sky with brighter stars.  A black bird rests in branches covered in red berries.  On the right side, snow swirls.  An icy blue area indicates a frozen pond.  This is a marvelous collage of winter wonders.

Not only is My Big Book Of Outdoors written and illustrated by Tim Hopgood brimming with information, activities, and stunning artwork, but it is an ode to nature.  Your appreciation for the outdoor world will grow with every supplied observation.  You will want to have a copy in both your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Tim Hopgood and his other work, please access his website by following the link attached to his name.  At his website, there are many images from this book to view.  Tim Hoppgood has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  At Penguin Random House, you can view interior illustrations.

In Good Company

Every day whether we step outside or open a window or a door, as soon as the fresh air hits our faces we are the recipients of an offering, freely given.  This soft gentle breeze, the trees, evergreen and deciduous, the plants and flowers of the forests and fields and all the animal dwelling therein are a part of the richness our planet provides for us.  With every breath we take, we are at the center of an astounding swirl of inter-connected activity.

In 2012 author Elin Kelsey collaborated with artist Soyeon Kim in their first title, You Are Stardust, exploring our deep connections with nature. Their second title, Wild Ideas: Let Nature Inspire Your Thinking (Owlkids Books, April 14, 2015), asks readers to look to nature for the best kind of problem solving by freeing our imaginations.  You Are Never Alone (Owlkids Books, April 15, 2019) by Elin Kelsey with artwork by Soyeon Kim is a hopeful and appreciative tribute to our Earth.

Every moment
this beautiful planet
showers you with gifts.

Above ground rain falls from clouds and plants produce oxygen.  Below ground creepers and crawlers break the dirt apart so everything grows better.  Bees during the day and bats during the night, pollinate plants supplying us with food.  From the oceans, elements enhance things we eat; algae are used in ice cream.

When wild weather descends our planet protects.  Mangrove trees assist in the prevention of mud slides.  Kelp in underwater forests ease the effects of huge waves.  Every tree contributes to guarding us and this planet by offering shelter and shade.

Teeny, tiny living things, on the inside and outside of our bodies ensure our safety and health.  What is broken in nature can be repaired.  There is a resilience like that of our bodies.  There are items in nature which can heal.  For those loving to play or work in the dirt, it yields components which helps our brains work better.

Did you know there is a chain between whales, salmon, bears, and trees?  These largest creatures on our planet are essential to many forms of life, including humans.  Let us not forget how our lives benefit from our dogs and cats.  We need the solace they bring.  We are always in the embrace of our Earth.


Beginning with the first sentence written by Elin Kelsey, we are assured line by line of the care furnished to us by every living breathing thing regardless of its size, shape or place of residence.  Elin Kelsey explores many places; above and below the ground, oceans, seas and rivers and even our bodies to acquaint us with wondrous happenings every single day.  Her word choices read like poetry but are based in scientific fact.  Here is a passage.

You always have company.

Armies of microorganisms
snuggle against your skin,
keeping germs at bay.

Your face is home
to wee little cleaning mites
who evolved from mites that lived
on the faces of your relatives.


It's hard not to gasp when you look at the front and the back of the open and matching dust jacket and book case.  Each image is created by Soyeon Kim from three-dimensional dioramas which are photographed.  These exquisite works of art blend realism and fantasy.  We think nothing of seeing a child climbing a tree to ride a huge bird or kelp and a fish sharing the same setting.

To the left, on the back, an entire diorama is shown.  It's a view of a forest blending into a neighborhood.  If you flip over the open dust jacket, seven dioramas are on display for readers.  We are asked how the dioramas are connected.  We are challenged to find them in the body of the book.

The opening and closing endpapers are a dark teal.  On the initial title page, we see a whale diving into a hillside near two houses.  In the foreground a child and a bear peek around bushes.  On the verso and formal title pages, a whale breaches from left to right with another child riding on the tip.

Joyous children are embedded in every two-page illustration, walking on tree branches as an enlarged elk (caribou) watches them from the tree top.  A fox joins them on another branch.  A little girl rides a ground beetle underground as another little girl rides a bat at twilight. Girls and a boy, wearing their clothes wander among sea creatures, kelp and a whale.  You are compelled to pause at every page turn to notice each intricate item.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is an underwater scene.  A deep blue canvas showcases the brilliant gathering of vivid plants and animals.  It's like looking at a brand-new box of crayons.  A child moves into three different positions.  You know she could stay there all day and not see the same thing twice.  Will readers notice the change in her body?


You can't help but feel a sense of calm move from your head to your toes when reading You Are Never Alone written by Elin Kelsey with illustrations by Soyeon Kim.  This title comforts readers as well as inspiring them to cheer for our environment and its inhabitants.  It is a timely title for Earth Day celebrated this year on April 22nd.  Perhaps it will also promote a discussion of The Nature Conservancy's plan to plant one billion trees.  I highly recommend this title and the two previous titles by this collaborative team for your personal and professional collections.

To discover more about Elin Kelsey and Soyeon Kim, please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Elin Kelsey has an account on Twitter.  Soyeon Kim has an account on Instagram.  At the publisher's website you have access to interior images, a teacher's guide and two videos by the illustrator and author talking about this book.  Soyeon Kim explains in detail about her illustrative process.  It is time-consuming but fascinating.  Elin Kelsey teaches us about the science behind her words.  At Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast, author, reviewer and blogger, Julie Danielson highlights this title.  Soyeon Kim shares a lot about her process.

Gone Forever

In our region of northern Michigan, the two worst storms of winter 2017-2018 arrived in April.  This was followed by a summer leaving us categorized with severe drought.  Then the rains came in September . . . for weeks.  On the heels of this non-stop rain, our first snow arrived on November 10, 2018 and it's here to stay.  The seasons of my childhood and early adulthood are no longer present.  Our resilient but fragile planet and its inhabitants are in danger.  The National Snow & Ice Data Center recorded in October 2018 the third lowest extent of ice in the Arctic region between the dates of 1979 and 2018 according to satellite records.

The 12 lowest September ice extents over the satellite record have all occurred since 2007.

If Polar Bears Disappeared (Roaring Brook Press, August 28, 2018) written and illustrated by Lily Williams discusses polar bears, other Arctic animals and their habitats.  More importantly this is tied to the current and future state of sea ice in the region.  Lily Williams clearly presents how all areas and life on this Earth are critically tied together.

THIS IS THE ARCTIC.  It's an ecosystem in the far northern region of the globe.  

Of the limited animals residing here, they've adapted to the conditions.  One of these creatures is the polar bear.  Descended from brown bears it changed its habits (and its color) to revolve around sea ice. Sea ice is essential for food (and travel and reproduction.) The lack of sea ice and thus, food, for polar bears creates a ripple effect.

Without polar bears the population of ringed seals, their main entree, would rise but they would soon find themselves in the same position, without any sea ice, as polar bears.  Orcas, like polar bears, feast on seals.  Without sea ice access is easier but the numbers of seals would drastically decline.  Forced to move south for food, the presence of orcas would be problematic for other large predators.

Sea ice shields the landscape from the sun.  The increase in heat would be devastating for plant life.  Animals needing plants for food, like caribou, would suffer.  Land animals who rely on snow for shelter and protection would be victims of these new conditions.  Patterns in the lives of birds would not be maintained without their food, insects.  Everything is tied together.

With the sea ice gone the effects would spread from ecosystem to ecosystem around the world.  Can we save polar bears? Is there a possibility of stopping this?  Yes!  We are not alone in our desire to save these majestic beings.  Great minds are at work.  Read. Search. Act.


For her intended audience (for all of us) Lily Williams writes with clarity.  Her facts and explanations reveal knowledge born of careful research.  Each portion of her narrative is connected to the next with a repetitive phrase.  Although the presented possibilities are frightening, we are given direction and hope.  Here are several passages.

Without enough snow, subnivean
mammals like lemmings, who make
their dens in the snow, would lose
their homes,
exposing them to the harsh
weather and predators, and
decreasing their populations.

With many of the herbivores gone, non-apex
predators such as the snowy owl and Arctic
fox would be the next to lose their main
food sources.


The limited color palette on the opened and matching dust jacket and book case is reflective of the Arctic region and its inhabitants.  The hues of blue and the stark white depict the frigid temperatures and the harshness of the sea and landscape.  It also allows for the startling contrast of red in the title text and the dotted lines around the polar bear.    On the front two characters, seen exploring and learning about the region throughout the book, are introduced.

To the left, on the back, two small cubs on the extended sea ice are outlined in red.  Three seals are featured above them.  In the far distance a large group of animals gather.  The opening and closing endpapers are a breathtaking vista of the northern lights; an upward swirl of greens and purples.  Along the bottom three smaller black figures stand; the three polar bears.

Double-page pictures beginning with the title and verso pages take readers into the Arctic.  The two girls and adult woman on a four-wheeler are buzzing over the snow.  Each illustration elevates the text with a visual interpretation.  Four of the pages contain a grouping of smaller images to coincide with the narrative.  When necessary Lily Williams labels elements in the pictures; names of animals in cross-sections under the snow and how the sun is reflected or absorbed on sea ice or the water.

One of my favorite illustrations is toward the conclusion.  It is a view of mountains of snow and ice.  In the foreground dusk is settling.  Between two peaks the dying rays of the sun shed a pale peach light.  Along the bottom on the left, close to readers, are the two girls and the woman.  They are watching the polar bear and two cubs in the distance.  The cubs are playing. This image leads to the final picture, one filled with hope.


Informative words and illustrations contribute to the power found in If Polar Bears Disappeared written and illustrated by Lily Williams.  At the end of the book readers will find a glossary, passages titled The Arctic Is In Trouble and How You Can Help Save Polar Bears, an author's note, acknowledgements, a bibliography and additional sources.  This back matter is welcome and important to readers.  I highly recommend you include a copy of this title in your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Lily Williams and her other work, please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  At a publisher's website you can view eight interior images.  Lily Williams maintains an account on Twitter, and Instagram.  Lily Williams and her editor, Emily Feinberg chat with teacher librarian Matthew Winner on The Children's Book Podcast.  

A Restoration

For those of us living in the state of Michigan we are familiar with the power found in the things for which we have no control.  Many, if not most, of our inland lakes and the five Great Lakes were formed during the last glacial period.  Also as a part of the solar system our planet is subject to the effects of the sun and the forces of nature each and every day.

For any number of reasons changes to our landscapes happen, too, due to human interference.  Creekfinding: A True Story (University of Minnesota Press, March 7, 2017) written by Jacqueline Briggs Martin with illustrations by Claudia McGehee follows the efforts of one man to unearth a cherished treasure.  Nature is resilient if we honor our stewardship.

THE CREEKFINDING MACHINE
An excavator is a machine
that chomps dirt.
Excavators dig holes for basements,
trenches for water pipes, paths for roads.

Sometimes excavators help find lost creeks.
How do they do that?

The word lost is generally not applied to a creek.  A creek is there or it isn't but man has powerful tools at his disposal.  With them he can take away what nature has formed.  A creek is more than water running down a path.  It's an entire small world composed of a variety of flora and fauna.

The creek in question did not get up and leave, it was covered over with dirt so a farmer could plant fields of corn.  The spring which fed the creek was buried under layers and layers of soil.  Years went by and the land was sold to a man named Mike.  Mike had a dream of turning the land into a natural prairie.

To Mike's surprise when he was working on his property one day, another man came by to say he had caught a brook trout in the exact spot where they were standing.  Now Mike had a new dream.  He was going to locate that creek regardless of what others said.  One person did not feel Mike was following a task doomed to failure.  He was given an old picture; a picture of the creek.  This was all Mike needed.

Friends with big machines came.  Friends with a willingness to plant came.  A spring bubbled back to life and brought other life with it.  Brook Creek was born.


As you read through the conversational paragraphs penned by Jacqueline Briggs Martin you feel the same marvel she must have felt doing the research for the writing of this book.  In her author's note she states:

I have always been drawn to stories of finding and fixing, stories of patching what has been broken.

Jacqueline Briggs Martin begins by connecting us to the creek.  We feel the loss when it and the plants, birds, insects, and frogs disappear under the dirt from the farmer's bulldozer.  This sadness makes the knowledge of Mike's chance meeting and new dream even better.  Page by page she builds on this excitement.  As the months and years pass she uses specific examples to build our hope for the revived creek, Brook Creek.  In addition to the main narrative, we are privy to further facts about a creek, the plant life around a creek and the animal inhabitants.  This text is italicized and written in a smaller font.  Here are some passages.

Mike and his friends tucked cordgrass
and other green shoots into the creekbanks.
Three summers grasses grew.
When the creek bed needed more rocks
Mike had a problem.

Heavy trucks crossing
to the creek would press
deep ruts into the ground,
kill new prairie plants.
How could he get more
rocks to the creek?

Small rocks protect the soil under the streambed and are home to many tiny plants and creatures.


When you open the matching dust jacket and book case, you have to wonder at the intricate detail achieved using the scratchboard and watercolor artistic technique.  All the elements on the front and the back are telling their own story.  The first picture is issuing an invitation as it promotes questions.  To the left on the back, a close-up of a red-winged blackbird brings us directly to the creek.  Can you hear the birdsong?  Can you feel the soft prairie breeze against your skin or see it blow through the grass?  Can you hear the hum of insects?

The opening and closing endpapers are a gorgeous display of the creek edge; flowers, grasses, and cattails in motion.  The first is as night closes and the sky begins to lighten.  The second is filled with the orange shades of a setting sun.  On the inside of the opening and closing first pages is a diagonal pattern in gray and white of swimming trout.

With each page turn readers are treated to either a single page picture or marvelous two page vistas or a series of explanatory smaller visuals.  They flow flawlessly to supply a soothing but expectant pace.  Claudia McGehee alters her perspectives, sometimes within the same image.

One of my many favorite illustrations spans two pages.  It is a full moon night in winter.  Claudia uses a pleasing blend of white, black, gray, purple, spots of brown and yellow to fashion a breathtaking expanse of the creek winding through the prairie.  The creek and the land near it are in the foreground.  Above this is a line of trees and shrubs.  A night sky with a few stars fills the top of the picture.  On the right the moon shines down.  On the left an owl glides over the snow-covered grasses.


Although published more than one year ago this title is new to me and new to my local public library.  I am very thankful to have found Creekfinding: A True Story written by Jacqueline Briggs Martin with illustrations by Claudia McGehee on their shelves.  It is a story sure to inspire readers to never lose sight of their dreams.  It is a story reminding us to care for our planet.  I highly recommend this title for your personal and professional collections.  Included with the author's note is an illustrator's note and more about Mike.

To learn more about author Jacqueline Briggs Martin and illustrator Claudia McGehee, please visit their respective websites by following the links attached to their names.  Both Jacqueline and Claudia have blogs.  Claudia maintains an account on Instagram.  This title is the recipient of the 2018 Green Book Award, Picture Book category.  It is also one of several books honored with a John Burroughs Association 2018 Riverby Award.  You might enjoy listening to Creekfinding: A True Story About a Creek that was Lost, Found, and Restored on Iowa Public Radio.  Both the author and illustrator are interviewed.  Bookology has an interview of Jacqueline Briggs Martin about this title.  Enjoy the video showcasing the artistic process of Claudia McGehee.

Scratching a magpie from Claudia McGehee on Vimeo.


Please take a few moments to visit Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to view the titles selected this week by others participating in the 2018 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.