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----------------------------------- Recipient of Peach’s Picks Award Top Ten Favorite Books Summer 2011 |
Illustrator: Rick Allen
Peach’s Picks Rating:
Year of publication: 2010
City of publication: Boston, MA
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
ISBN: 978-0-547-15228-8
Author website: http://www.joycesidman.com/
Illustrator website: http://www.kenspeckleletterpress.com/
Media used for illustrations: Quotation about the creative process was from retrieved from the book’s copyright page: “The prints in this book were made by the process of relief printing. A drawing or sketch is transferred onto a block of wood or, in this instance, a sheet of linoleum mounted on wood, and the drawing is then cut and carved away using a variety of tools. The areas left uncut are covered with ink and printed on paper by hand or on a press; a number of blocks can be cut and then successively printed in different colors, with the different blocks being “registered” or aligned to create a multicolored print. The prints for Dark Emperor were each printed from at least three blocks (and in some instances as many as six) and the hand-colored with a strongly pigmented watercolor called gouache.”
Annotation: A picturebook collection of twelve poems celebrating the night forests of North America. Factual information is offered for each poem complementing the poem’s subject.
Personal reaction to the book: This book is filled with lovely poems as well as interesting facts; for example, a baby porcupine is called a porcupette. Another interesting bit of information, “…a scientist named a. E. Dolbear worked out a formula to calculate outside temperature based on how fast a tree cricket trills” (page 21). That and more can be learned while enjoying the lyrical poems, informational facts, and stunning illustrations found in this book. It is a beautifully designed picturebook containing twelve poems as well as facts about night creatures including owls, crickets, and raccoons. Also, several poems discuss plants found in the forest. The setting is a forest in North America, most probably a forest in Minnesota, the home state of the author and illustrator. The twelve poems included in the book reflect different styles of poetry including a ballad (page 24, “Ballad of the Wandering Eft”), a concrete poem (page 12, “Dark Emperor”), and ubi sunt verse (page 28, “Moon’s Lament”)*. The striking book design includes an illustrator’s note explaining his creative process, a table of contents, pagination, and a glossary. Each poem is featured on a double-page spread. The poem is placed on the left opening accompanied by a complementary illustration. The main illustration is placed on the right opening which also includes a sidebar with factual information about the subject of the poem. The poems are printed against a white background that extends to the right page, framing the main illustration and providing the background for the sidebar. The illustrator accentuates the scenes by using dark lines in the prints. The earth tone palette offset by deep blue and black gives the impression of viewing the forest at night. The pictures show creatures hidden in night shadows and the darkness of the forest. The book introduces the reader to the forest night beginning with a wordless double-page spread of an owl swooping through the countryside as the sun sets. It ends with a wordless double-page spread of the same countryside with the owl sitting in a tree looking at the reader as the sun rises. The wrap-around cover shows a large owl sitting on a tree branch looking down on the reader. A moon is in the dusky blue sky behind him where bats and another owl are flying. The book reads well aloud. The illustrations are best enjoyed individually or in a small group so details can be appreciated. Use this book in conjunction with the author’s other poetry books that have nature themes.
General curricular connections:
- Poetry
- National Poetry Month
- Science / habitat study / study of North American forest animals and plants
Recommended grade levels:
School Library Journal recommends this book for use with grades 3-6
Booklist recommends this book for use with grades 3-6
Peach’s Picks recommends this book for use with grades 1-6
Awards/Recognitions:
Booklist starred review
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books starred review
Publishers Weekly starred review
Junior Library Guild Selection
Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, Honor Book, Picture Book category, 2011
Newbery Medal Honor book, 2011
ALA Notable Children’s Books, All Ages, 2011
Notable Children’s Books in the English Language Arts, 2011
Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12, Life Science, 2011
Note: This entry applies to the assignment criteria to review books published during 2010-2011. *For those unfamiliar with ubi sunt verse, a definition may be found at http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/612335/ubi-sunt
Rhythm: The poem titled “Welcome to the Night” found on page one has an iambic metre
Rhyme: The poem titled “Welcome to the Night” found on page one has an AAAB rhyme scheme
Repetition: The poem titled “Welcome to the Night” found on page one repeats the line “Welcome to the night.”
Repetition: An eft is found in the illustrations of each poem
Simile: Page 5; “Evening unfolds like a primrose”
Alliteration: Use of “s” in the poem “Snail at Moonrise” found on page 3
Personification: Page 13; in the poem “I Am a Baby Porcupette” where the line reads “we mew and coo a soft duet”
Book cover picture retrieved from http://www.juniorlibraryguild.com/books/view.dT?isbn=9780547152288
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