A Raptor Reality

Deep in the darkening shadows of night, a sound echoes from the trees.  Along an empty roadway, the heavy flapping of wings stirs the air around bare branches.  You hear them more than see these mostly nocturnal predators.  It's a gift to observe one in the wild.

Known as mighty hunters, they silently and swiftly strike.  Their combined physical characteristics create a deadly force.  Whoo-Ku Haiku: A Great Horned Owl Story (G. P. Putnam's Sons, March 3, 2020) written by Maria Gianferrari with illustrations by Jonathan Voss is an informative, captivating exploration of the life cycle of these majestic birds.

A great horned owl pair
Finds a squirrel's nest of oak leaves
Perched high in a pine.

This haiku poem is the first of twenty-four beautifully worded insights.  Each observation adds to our growing knowledge of great horned owls.  It's as if we are present, watching this duo day by day through the seasons.

The newly discovered nest is re-fashioned while snow still coats the ground.  The owl pair are not without enemies; crows are a constant distraction.  The male hunts while the female tends the eggs, three pale orbs.

Even the most vigilant parents can loose an egg, a feast for a nearby woodland creature.  After the remaining two eggs hatch, mother and father feed, shield and guard them.  Watch out for that hawk!  Owlets venture from the nest, testing their feathers.  Flap wings, flap!  Flee from a waiting fox!  A mother dives.

Owlets rest, now safely back in their nest, eyes glowing in the night.  Parents protect.  Owlets learn to survive as months pass.  When autumn approaches, wings lift two to begin their lives away from the only home they've known.


With each haiku, writer Maria Gianferrari brings us deeper into the sensory experience of being a great horned owl.  Her masterful use of this literary form provides facts but also supplies us with a range of emotional moments.  We become one with these raptors through alliteration, onomatopoeia and poetry. Here are two more haiku.

Mama lays an egg
In the starlight it glistens
A moon of its own.

Pip. Pip. Pip. Poking.
A hole, cracking. Cracking. Crack!
Pink owlet pecks out.


Upon opening the matching dust jacket and book case readers will have to remind themselves to breathe.  This stunning portrait of the great horned owl parents and two owlets presents them for the nobility they are.  This nocturnal setting shows them at their realistic best.  The exquisite details throughout the book begin with this initial image.  The use of light and shadow is excellent.

The trunk of the tree crosses the spine to show the male in flight, wings spread upward.  Its eyes are searching, glowing as it gazes.  This bird is poised for action.  The tip of the left wing bleeds off the top, indicating motion.

A dark forest green covers the opening and closing endpapers.  On the title page the male and female have located an empty squirrel nest.  The one perches on a branch above the nest, as the other, wings up, prepares to land in the nest. On the final page, tree branches frame the text as a great horned owl, mouth open, flies between the dedication and publication information.

Rendered

using sepia ink and watercolor on Arches 300# hot press watercolor paper with color added digitally

by artist Jonathan Voss these illustrations elevate the words.  The depiction of the settings, seasons and time of day involves you completely as readers.  All the pictures are double-page visuals.  Sometimes the text is tucked into an image.  Other times a column is supplied on either the right or the left for the narrative.  Jonathan Voss has painted a smaller separate illustration to be placed on these columns at the bottom.  They expand the story vividly.

To place emphasis on pacing Jonathan Voss alters the point of view.  When the crows initially attack, it is at night.  We see them swooping against a somewhat cloudy sky with the full moon peeking through as the female owl, closer to us, defends the nest.  When the fox tries to consume the owlet and the mother plunges to the rescue, we are right in the action.  You can hear all the loud sounds amid the fury of wings and snapping teeth.

One of my many favorite illustrations is when the first owlet cracks through the egg.  We are very close to this wonder of new life.  The nest is shown along the bottom of the page.  The mother owl's body extends from left to right.  On the left her head is shifted to look at the newly emerged owl baby.  Her wing acts as a sheltering roof over the small bird.  The use of color and shading is radiant.


This book, Whoo-Ku Haiku: A Great Horned Owl Story written by Maria Gianferrari with illustrations by Jonathan Voss, is a remarkable nonfiction depiction.  Two pages at the end are devoted to twelve more fascinating facts and a list of resources divided into books, websites and videos.  I can't imagine a personal or professional collection without a copy of this book.

To learn more about Maria Gianferrari and Jonathan Voss and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their respective websites.  Maria Gianferrari has accounts on Facebook and Instagram.  Jonathan Voss has accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  At the publisher's website you can view the title page.  This title is highlighted with interviews at Mrs. Knott's Book Nook, Jennifer Mary G, Wild Delight and Miss Marple's Musings.

UPDATE:  Jonathan Voss is featured at KidLit411 on April 3, 2020.


WHOO's Maria Gianferrari?  She's a self-proclaimed bird nerd with a special fondness for raptors.  Her love affair with birds began in 7th grade science class when her teacher, Mr. Lefebvre, initiated a bird count.  While walking in her neighborhood, Maria's always on the look-out for all kinds of birds, and she loves searching winter treetops for nests in her northern Virginia neighborhood where she lives with her German-scientist husband and German speaking daughter.  This is her first book with GP Putnam's Sons.  She's also the author of another bird book, Hawk Rising. 






Be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to view the other titles selected this week by participants in the 2020 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.

Gazing Goodness

When connections are made between characters and readers it's sometimes hard to let them go when a book reaches its conclusion.  In fact, once my students (or I) get hooked on a series, the wait for the next book is almost unbearable.  Eventually when the new titles arrive names are drawn to see who gets to check them out first.

Fans of the nearly wordless five graphic novels which introduced readers to Owly were thrilled with the first all color picture book, Owly & Wormy:  Friends All Aflutter! (reviewed here).  Jumping with joy is going to be an understatement when they see the latest title, Owly & Wormy: Bright Lights and Starry Nights!(Atheneun Books For Young Readers)  Author/illustrator Andy Runton has penned and pictured another tender tale shared by two of the most unlikely but devoted friends.


With grins all around the story begins even before the title page with the arrival of a package containing a telescope.  As the sun sets Owly reveals his plans for a nighttime adventure although Wormy is a tad bit scared by the dark and the mysterious

CLICKITY SKREEEEE

emitting from the surrounding forest.  Like the true friend he is, Owly has the answer, a lantern and candles.

Problem number one strikes when the leafy branches of their home block any sight of the stars.  But not to worry, Owly has a plan.  Tomorrow they will trek to the hill with a clear view.  Packed for the hike the two drift off to sleep no doubt dreaming of their adventure tomorrow.

Midway through their hilltop lunch the next day, problem number two rolls in with dark clouds and rain.  If he had a middle name it would be prepared, Owly has packed rain gear and finds a cave not too far away.  Ooooo...what's that sound?

CLICKITY...SKREEEEEE......

Yikes!  They scurry out of there in a hurry.  Whew...after the rain stops they set up their tiny tent on the hill, lantern and candles are lit and they're ready to look toward the night sky only to discover...problem number three...the telescope has fallen from Owly's backpack.

Wormy quickly volunteers to stay and guard the encampment (there's no way he's going back toward "those" sounds).  Now clearly lost in the darkened woods, needing to locate the telescope, Owly is starting to get spooked by the noises too.  Silence broken by eerie notes, peering eyes, creatures of the night are coming into sight.

Saddened Owly longs to return to Wormy.  Frightened, Wormy is wondering about shadows and the whereabouts of Owly.  Owly and Wormy realize, as do readers, the darkness can reveal much if we have the eyes and minds to understand.


When you look at the jacket and cover opened, it is impossible not to get caught up in the smiles worn by Owly, Wormy, the bats, chipmunk, opossum, raccoon, snail and fireflies.  This crew of forest creatures are clearly enjoying their nighttime escapade.  After the soft purple endpapers (opening and closing), a turn of page shows Owly's telescope delivered by a snail wearing a MAIL pouch.  You have to love the humor and joy portrayed in this sunny, opening illustration.

Following with the publication data carefully tucked into the tip top branches in the left-hand corner, the title arching like the sunset on the right-hand page, standing on the platform of their tree house (spread across two pages) our two pals are ready to greet their next adventure. Given that most of this story takes place at night Runton uses velvety shades of purple, deep blues, gray and black within and around his pictures drawn and inked by hand with digital pastels for coloring.  As in the previous title he alters his visual sizes and placement to punctuate and enhance pauses, pace and the storyline.  There is a pleasing balance to the flow of the tale.

Rebus-like speech bubbles clarify the "dialogue" between the two friends as well as the newest members of the tale.  The expressions depicted on all the characters are compelling and brimming with emotion; the widening of eyes, the curve of mouth or the lifting of an eyebrow leave no doubt as to what they are feeling.  One of my favorite two page spreads is when Owly brings out the lantern and candles to light up the night for Wormy.


Written and illustrated by Andy Runton Owly & Wormy: Bright Lights and Starry Nights entertains in the best possible way; tucking in the message about embracing the night and what it has to offer within a wonderful story of friendship enduring the ups and downs of life's events.  Publishers, Simon & Schuster offer a glimpse of eleven images from the story at a link here.  Andy and Patty Runton have designed a 30 page lesson plan packet which can be downloaded in .pdf format here.  Be sure you head over to the website linked to Andy Runton's name above for even more graphic goodies plus an Owly T-shirt, hat and plush toy.

Check out this adorable short animated video about Owly & Wormy.