The Blues Go Birding Across America

Carol L. Malnor and Sandy F. Fuller
Illustrated by Louise Schroeder

Five birds make up the group: Bing, Lulu, Uno, Eggbert, and Sammi. The five birds were asked to sing in concert on the Fourth of July at the White House Lawn. Their mission is to find a new song to sing at this concert. To do this, the group of five birds decides to go on a road trip to find new sounds for the White House concert. Setting off, the first stop was in Alaska where the Bald Eagle lived. From there the group of five traveled to Hawaii spotting a Black-Footed Albatross. Going east to California, the next bird they found was a Ring-Billed Gull. Still, though, the group had not found sounds they could use for the White House concert. There were more stops coming up, New Mexico and the Rocky Mountain National Park. They did not stay long and continued on to Kansas to hear the song of the Western Meadowlark. Perhaps the fancy whistles they heard could be learned, but the group of five were not done yet. The Turkey Vulture in Texas was next, and there were more birds across America to be seen. Does the group ever find the new sounds they are looking for?

For each bird they came across, Eggbert added his birding tips on each stop, and one of the five in the group includes a notebook. Statistics are included for each bird that is easy to learn. The illustrations are beautifully colored, realistic portrayals of each bird. A Reading Guide, in pdf format, is available online for those who may read this book to multiple children. This is an excellent book to teach young readers about bird watching.

BIBLIO: 2010, Dawn Publications, Ages 5 – 9, $8.95.
REVIEWER: Debby Willett
FORMAT: Picture Book / Easy to Read Nature
ISBN: 978-1-58469-1259

REVIEWED FOR: Children’s Literature, Online Version, 5/24/10

Meet My Neighbor, the Artist

Marc Crabtree

David Scott is a neighbor artist who works with paints and pencils. Mr. Scott introduces his wife and baby son and then shows steps he takes in painting his pictures. Paints must be placed on a glass palette and some mixed to create other colors. He has been painting a picture of a house, which he paints with his son on his lap. Paintings of ducks, a starling, and a bald eagle shows another side to Mr. Scott’s talent. Using pencils in drawings, he starts with very sharp pencils and a magnifying glass to get the details correct. When his projects are completed, he takes his pictures to a framer who then hangs them on a wall so Mr. Scott can see them before taking them to the gallery. At the gallery potential buyers can then view the pictures and purchase them.
Mr. Crabtree has included a picture glossary at the back of the book to help the reader understand included terms. The photographs were taken by the author and are colorful and help tell the story of the artist, Mr. Scott.

BIBLIO: 2009, Crabtree Publishing Co., Ages 4-6, $6.95
REVIEWER: Debby Willett
FORMAT: Juvenile Literature
ISBN: 978-0-7787-4579-2
REVIEWED FOR: Children’s Literature, Online Version, 8/19/09