First Notes of Spring - Hardcover

Kulekjian, Jessica

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1547604735 ISBN 13: 9781547604739

Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2022

Synopsis

Not Quite Narwhal meets ­­­­And Then It's Spring in this funny, charming picture book debut about marching to the beat of your own drum to create a song that wakes Spring.

Juniper can't wait to audition for the First Notes of Spring, the orchestra that melts away winter and wakes up spring with its melodies. With her strong sticks, thumpity toadstool, and rowdy rhythms, she plays with all her might. BOOMEY-BOOM-BOOM!

But Mr. Moose says there's no room in the band for her loud percussion skills. Juniper is heartbroken, until she discovers other tappers, clappers, and noisemakers in the woods. As they parade through the forest playing music together, they learn that maybe their song can wake spring too.

Watch the seasons change in this delightful picture book about being true to yourself, sure to leave readers with a spring in their step.

About this title

About the Author

Jessica Kulekjian first discovered her love for storytelling during a young author's contest in elementary school. Even though she lost (three times!), she didn't give up writing. After years of practice, and with lots of encouragement from family, friends, teachers, and other storytellers, Jessica became the author of picture books, including Before We Stood Tall: From Small Seed to Mighty Tree. Jessica has an MA in Teaching and works at a public charter school, supporting homeschooling families. She lives with her husband and three kids in Central California.

jessicakulekjian.com
@jessicakulekjian (Instagram)

Jennifer Bower is the illustrator of over ten books, including The Funniest Man in Baseball: The True Story of Max Patkin. She grew up on a steady diet of classic cartoons and midcentury picture books, many of which still bear her bite marks. Jennifer earned her BFA degree roughly twenty years after picking up her first crayon. She lives in North Carolina where she spends time knitting, working on crossword puzzles, container gardening, volunteering at Mitey Riders, and loving on her fur-babies.

jennbower.com
@jennbower (Instagram)

Reviews

K-Gr 2-Juniper the badger loves to play the drums (a perky red and white toadstool with sticks) and is excited to join other forest creatures in making music to wake up spring. But her audition ends in discouragement when Mr. Moose says spring must be awoken gently with flutes and strings, not noisily with drums. As Juniper walks through the forest, she hears beauty in loud, ordinary noises, like a woodpecker tapping a tree or a rabbit thumping the ground. When they join together to joyfully create music, winter melts away. There are plenty of repetitious onomatopoeia in big bold font throughout that readers will enjoy performing out loud. Adults will appreciate how Mr. Moose's negatives about Juniper's playing (too fast, too loud, too wild) become positives as Juniper's group grows. Kids will delight in the unexpected images in the full spread woodland scenes, such as toilets in animals' underground habitats. VERDICT Universal topics like seasons and being true to yourself always do well on shelves; this is a nice addition to spring collections and a reminder to celebrate your strengths.-Elissa Cooper, Helen Plum Memorial Lib., Lombard, ILα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Edition details

• Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
• Publication date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1547604735
• ISBN 13: 9781547604739
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Bower Jennifer
• Number of pages: 40