Bees, Snails, & Peacock Tails: Patterns & Shapes . . . Naturally - Hardcover

Franco, Betsy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1416903860 ISBN 13: 9781416903864

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2008

Synopsis

Come explore the hidden shapes and patterns in nature. The peacock's flashy tail is a masterpiece of color and shape. A buzzing beehive is built of tiny hexagons. Even a snake's skin is patterned with diamonds.
Poet Betsy Franco and Caldecott Honor winner Steve Jenkins bring geometry to life in this lively, lyrical look at the shapes and patterns that can be found in the most unexpected places.

About this title

About the Author

Betsy Franco is the author of numerous books for children, including Counting Our Way to the 100th Day! and Mathematickles!, both illustrated by Steven Salerno; and Birdsongs, illustrated by Steve Jenkins. She and her husband live in Palo Alto, California. They have three sons -- two actors and a sculptor. Visit Betsy's website at www.betsyfranco.com.

Steven Jenkins (1952–2021) was the illustrator of many celebrated children’s books including Can an Aardvark Bark? and Fourteen Monkeys by Melissa Stewart; Hello, Baby! by Mem Fox; Mama Built a Little Nest and Mama Dug a Little Den by Jennifer Ward; and the 2003 Caldecott Honor recipient, What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?, which he created with his wife, Robin Page. Learn more about his life and work at SteveJenkinsBooks.com.

Reviews

Kindergarten-Grade 3—This poetry picture book about patterns in nature has some spreads on which rhymes sing and artwork thrills—and others that disappoint. The peacock page delights readers with a Jenkins collage at his feathery best and these clever lines: "If you should meet a peacock pair,/the male's the one with all the flair./The female, who is rather plain,/is dazzled by his patterned train." In the spread about symmetry in moths' wing patterns, the insects' furry bodies seem to pop from the paper, but the text's attempt to rhyme "eyes" with "side" and "spring" with "wings" doesn't measure up. A clever spiral poem on the topshell snail is accompanied by a surprisingly flat and listless illustration. Awkward scanning in the rhymes throughout will make the book especially hard to read aloud without practice. Jarring in a book that is scientific in tone despite its poetic format is the statement that sea stars "grow back an arm/if they get into scrapes,/for they take such great pride/in their bright, starry shapes." One or two simple facts about the habits of each animal are included in the end matter. For an excellent poetic book about nature by this duo, try Birdsongs (S & S, 2007).—Ellen Heath, Easton Area Public Library, Easton, PA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

*Starred Review* The duo behind Birdsongs (2007) teams up again in this winning introduction to the patterns and shapes found in the natural world. From the dazzling eyes of the male peacock’s feathers to the hexagonal chambers of the bee’s hive, Franco’s spirited poems explore the many forms and functions of nature’s geometry. Verses tuck neatly into each subject’s double-page spread or cleverly echo its shape, mimicking the spiral lines of a snail’s shell or the rounded exterior of a puffer fish, and an appending section explains the scientific facts behind each poem. Jenkins’ masterful collage work, which renders everything from the transparency of dew drops on a spider web to the soft gray fur of a deer mouse, will have readers impulsively reaching out to feel the tactile appearance of the shaped and textured papers. The perfect precursor to a science unit or a simple walk in the park. Further information on each of the animals is appended. Preschool-Grade 2. --Kristen McKulski

Edition details

• Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
• Publication date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1416903860
• ISBN 13: 9781416903864
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Jenkins Steve
• Number of pages: 40