SAGUARO'S GIFTS: A Informational PIcture Book Review and Giveaway

 I'm always impressed with the scope of picture books that Sleeping Bear Press publishes. Today's book is no exception.  SAGUARO's GIFTS should adorn elementary school classrooms and family bookshelves with its evocative yet child-friendly poetry by Kurt Cyrus and gorgeous illustrations by Andy Atkins. 

REVIEW

That opening page is followed by 

The world is dark. The bloom is white.

A bat emerges from the night.

"Hello, Saguaro!"

Every year I find the sweetest nectar here.

And happy birthday, by the way.

One hundred years, this very day!

Throughout the book, desert animals, birds, and insects pay homage to the cactus on its' 100th birthday. Play a game with young readers and ask them to find the hummingbird, woodpecker, owl, butterflies, a coyote, and a tortoise. 

All the animals pause when they hear,

A bobcat races up the trail

with javelina on his tail.

"Clear the way!" the bobcat screeches,

scrambling to the highest reaches.

 

The tortoise ends the day:

Another day is done old friend.

One hundred years have come and gone.

but you and I go on and on.

 

 

The book ends with a spread showing a meteor lighting up the night sky and the words, 

Another gift exchange tomorrow--

Happy birthday, dear Saguaro.

By the way, the flowers appear from April through June and are open for less than 24 hours. On a trip to Arizona nine years ago, I saw how huge these cacti are but unfortunately did not see their beautiful flowers.

GIVEAWAY

Leave me a comment by May 30 to enter this giveaway. Please leave your full name and email address if you are new to my blog. You can also email me if you prefer. Become a new follower or share this on social media and I'll enter your name twice. Make sure you tell me what you did! U.S. addresses only. 

Congratulations to Marci Whitehurst who won So Much More to Helen from last week's blog.

Our World: A First Book of Geography--A Review and Giveaway

My friends who are picture book writers, parents, grandparents, or teachers will LOVE Our World: A First Book of Geography, As I said in an email to the author, Sue Lowell Gallion, it is one of those books that you read and say to yourself, "Why didn't I think of that?" And then you have to go buy it for a young reader in your life.  

REVIEW

Our World is not only a beautifully written and illustrated board book about our world but when folded back it becomes a freestanding globe with a magnetic closure. Excuse the pun, but this is an out-of-this-world concept. The illustrator, Lisk Feng, did an outstanding job of bringing Sue Gallion's words to life. 

Our World begins with,

Many places to explore,
From mountain peaks to ocean floor.
Look around you, step outside . . .
Find forests tall
And grasslands wide. 

The poem continues by mentioning jungles, deserts, polar caps, bodies of water, mountains, etc.  

On the opposite page from each poem, there is a brief exposition of the natural wonders that are vividly depicted. 

This page describes the rivers, lakes, and oceans. The text reads:

High in the mountains, snow melts and flows downstream to form rivers. Other rivers begin as underground springs or lakes. Rivers flow into oceans. Did you know that most of our planet is covered in oceans? Fish, coral, and other animals thrive in shallow waters. Some creatures also live in the cold, black ocean depths. In some places, the ocean is deeper than the tallest mountains on Earth!

One of the pages shows the whole world. The poem reads, 

Continents large, islands small, 
Salty seas surrounding all.

The second to the last page shows a view of earth from outer space as an astronaut might see it. The exposition reads, "The light and warmth from the sun is what makes life on Earth possible for plants, animals, and humans too." The poem reads,

Our blue planet,

Warmed by sun:

The reader turns to the last page and finds a sweet illustration with this simple, yet poignant text:

A living home for everyone.

Because of the way in which the book is constructed, toddlers will enjoy flipping the pages and seeing how the magnets make the globe stick together. Pre-readers will enjoy rhythmic poetry. The text is informative for second through fourth graders, which makes the book a great preschool and elementary school resource when studying geography and ecosystems. 

You'll find an activity guide here and a hands-on activity guide to make an inflatable globe here.

GIVEAWAY

Interested in winning this book? I bet you are! Please leave me a comment with your email address (if you are new to my blog). Giveaway ends July 24 at 5 PM! As always, if you share on social media or subscribe to my blog, you receive an extra chance. Just let me know what you do!