Bird, Butterfly, Eel - Hardcover

Prosek, James

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689868294 ISBN 13: 9780689868290

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2009

Synopsis

Change is all around us.

From the first buds of springtime to the first autumn frost, nature shows us that change is all around us and that the world has its own way of beginning anew.

Bird, Butterfly, and Eel spend their summers on the same coastal farm, but in the fall they go to very distant and different places. Their journeys to the far reaches of land and sea make them remarkable creatures. James Prosek uses their stories and his own sun-kissed paintings to introduce young readers to the basic elements of bird, fish, and insect migration.

About this title

About the Author

James Prosek began his writing career at the age of twenty with Trout, An Illustrated History when he was still a student at Yale University. His other books include Joe and Me: An Education in Fishing and Friendship, The Complete Angler: A Connecticut Yankee Follows in the Footsteps of Walton, and Fly-Fishing the 41st: Around the World on the 41st Parallel. He wrote and co-produced a Peabody Award-winning fishing documentary on ESPN. His first venture into children's books, A Good Day's Fishing, followed his adult books' footsteps in its popularity. He lives next to a fishing pond in Easton, Connecticut. Visit James at his website www.jamesprosek.com.

Reviews

PreSchool-Grade 3—This unusual introduction to animal migration starts on a New England farm, which is home to a monarch butterfly, a barn swallow, and an American eel. During the summer, the creatures prepare for the long journey ahead. In fall, they travel more than a thousand miles to complete the next stage of their lives. Eventually, their offspring return to the same farm to recommence the cycle. The striking watercolor illustrations effectively introduce the animals in their habitats. Often the page layout, divided into three horizontal bands, reminds viewers of the parallel existence of bird, butterfly, and eel. The double-page map showing their respective journeys emphasizes the vast distances they migrate. Two pages of author notes supply fascinating information that older readers might use to expand their own knowledge or answer questions of curious listeners. A well-designed and useful resource to pique curiosity about an amazing aspect of the lives of many animals.—Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato
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On a New England farm in the summer, a monarch butterfly flits about, laying her eggs on milkweed plants in the meadow, while an eel swims and eats in the pond and a swallow tends her young in the rafters of the barn. Autumn arrives, and each begins a journey to a warmer place: Bird flies to Argentina, Butterfly flies to Mexico, and Eel swims down a creek and across the Atlantic to the Sargasso Sea. When spring comes to the farm, Bird, Butterfly, and Eel (or, as the appended notes clarify, their descendants) return. Apart from a couple of incongruous bits of anthropomorphism, the text tells what is happening in a concise, straightforward manner. Double-page paintings illustrate the animals and their habitats in broad, horizontal scenes. One particularly nice panel clearly depicts eight stages as a caterpillar changes into a butterfly. The book concludes with two pages of information on the three species. A satisfying addition to classroom units on migration. Grades K-3. --Carolyn Phelan

Edition details

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2009
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0689868294
• ISBN 13: 9780689868290
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 32