Smokejumpers One to Ten - Hardcover

Demarest, Chris L.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689841205 ISBN 13: 9780689841200

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2002

Synopsis

Filled with exciting pictures, a riveting book for young readers follows the smokejumpers, a group of highly trained airborne firefighters, as they parachute into remote areas to stop wildland and forest fires, rescuing our environment from devastation and saving lives. 15,000 first printing.

About this title

From Booklist

PreS-Gr. 1. Demarest follows his popular Firefighters A to Z [BKL July 00] with a counting book about an elite group of firefighters--the smokejumpers. Instead of riding on fire trucks, these hardy men and women fly in helicopters and parachute into wildfires, where they work on the ground clearing the surface and extinguishing blazes. Demarest counts from 1 to 10 and down again, beginning as a lightning bolt strikes a tree. The text continues as the smokejumpers board a helicopter, parachute to the ground, and head into action ("six steps apart, 'jumpers scrape the ground clean"). When "zero fires are spotted, they fly back to base." Demarest conveys a sense of both the urgency and the strenuous activity through his short phrases and large, action-packed paintings, which usually make even unfamiliar phrases such as "misery whip" understandable in context. An additional three pages of fairly high-level information are found at the back, along with a bibliography. Steer middle-grade future firefighters to Elaine Landau's recent Smokejumpers [BKL Je 1& 15 02]. Susan Dove Lempke
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2-This rhyming counting book, from 1 to 10 and down again, starts with 1 lightning bolt striking a tree that sets off a series of events leading to smokejumpers aptly performing their duties to help put out a forest fire. The colorful pastel illustrations are action-packed and make up for the sometimes weak language. Two additional illustrations, one diagramming a smokejumper outfit and the other showing wildland firefighter gear, frame the counting. Unfamiliar terms such as "misery whip" and "slurry" are explained in an appended author's note aimed at older or adult readers. This section discusses smokejumping as a career, training, equipment, risks, and safety issues. Elaine Landau's Smokejumpers (Millbrook, 2002) is loaded with photographs, but is for an older audience. Children will pick up Smokejumpers One to Ten right away-the cover is compelling. All told, this is a good choice for browsing and will be useful for fire-safety units.
Anne Chapman Callaghan, Racine Public Library, WI
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0689841205
• ISBN 13: 9780689841200
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Demarest Chris L.