The Buffalo Are Back

Author: Jean Craighead George

Illustrator: Wendell Minor

Peach's Picks Rating:

  



Year of publication: 2010

City of Publication: New York

Publisher: Dutton's Children's Books, a Division of Penguin Young Readers 

ISBN:  978-0-525-42215-0

Author website: http://www.jeancraigheadgeorge.com/

Illustrator website: http://www.minorart.com/

Media used for illustrations: Original watercolor paintings created by Wendell Minor who consulted photographs created by Charlie Craighead and Thomas D. Mangelsen. The illustrator also includes a list of reference books he consulted while creating this book. 

Annotation: Follows the history of buffalo from the mid-1800s to current day showing how their existence lends itself to the ecological balance of the land; how they faced extinction and now thrive.

Personal reaction to the book: The book is a work of nonfiction written in a story-like style clearly telling the history of the buffalo. The story is interesting and informative. The reader comes away with an understanding of why buffalo are important to the ecology of the Great Plains. The text reads aloud smoothly, offering the reader and the audience a chance to engage in the information. The author created chapter-like breaks, providing a teacher who is reading the book aloud an opportunity to logically stop and discuss information before proceeding to the next concept. Each open spread contains text on one page with the primary illustration on the opposite page making it easy to follow the text and illustrations. The illustrations are large enough to be viewed by a group during a read-aloud. The primary focus of each page faces right inviting the reader to turn the page. The font is slightly difficult to read because each capital letter appears in bold thus drawing the eye irregularly across the page. Ms. George has written a poignant story about an American icon that creates support for continuing efforts to maintain buffalo herds.

 

General curricular connections:

• Science/ecology
• Science/endangered species
• Science/enviornmental issues
• History/Great Plains
  

Specific example of curricular connection matched to State Standards:
Subject: Science / Ecology

Grade level: 9-12

Standards:

California State Standards

Biology/Life Sciences

Grades Nine - Twelve

Ecology

6. Stability in an ecosystem is a balance between competing effects. As a basis for understanding this concept: a. Students know biodiversity is the sum total of different kinds of organisms and is affected by alterations of habitats.

b. Students know how to analyze changes in an ecosystem resulting from changes in climate, human activity, introduction of nonnative species, or changes in population size.

Recommended grade levels: 
School Library Journal recommends the book for grades 2-5

Booklist recommends the book for grades 3-5

Peach’s Picks Rating recommends the book for grades 3 and up

Awards/Recognitions:
National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12: 2011 (Books published in 2010), Life Science division
Teacher’s Choice Award / Intermediate Readers, 2011

Junior Library Guild Selection

Note: This entry applies to the assignment criteria to review books published during  2010-2011. It is a work of nonfiction.

Simile: Page 2; "A lark flew to the top of a six-foot blade of grass and sang as sweetly as a panpipe".


Simile: Page 2; "The green-gold grasses of the plains rippled like waves from horizon to horizon.

 

Simile: Page 2; "A lark flew to the top of a six-foot blade of grass and sang as sweetly as a panpipe".

Repetition: Page 2; "A lark flew to the top of a six-foot blade of grass and sang as sweetly as a panpipe". Page 17; “A lark flew to a blade of grass and and as sweetly as a panpipe.” Page 27; "A lark flew to the top of a six-foot blade of grass and sang as sweetly as a panpipe."

Repetition: Page 2; "...an orange buffalo calf was. born. He wobbled to his feet and blinked." Page 27; "An orange calf wobbled to his feet and blinked."

Book cover picture retrieved from: http://www.minorart.com/childrensbooks.html