Product Description

Find a place to sit and watch and listen ... on the beach or in the woods or in a salt marsh. What can you see and hear?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #577680 in Books
• Published on: 2003-03-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 32 pages

From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 3-An open door and a path leading through the trees invite readers to join a young narrator on a nature walk and to observe the plants and wildlife that thrive in several different habitats. Each locale-the woods, a salt marsh, dunes, and the beach-is gloriously depicted in a three-page foldout that is entered through a die-cut. The scenes are filled with foliage and animals native to the particular environment and each one has a list of things to look for; some may be familiar to youngsters ("tracks in mud" or "a mosquito") and some may not ("salt marsh fleabane" or "a diamondback terrapin"). Phrases such as "an osprey with dinner" or "a clapper rail at its nest" give hints about which creature is which. A helpful key at the end assists with the identification of any flora or fauna that are missed. The outstanding realistic acrylic illustrations depict the scenes in an almost three-dimensional perspective, allowing children to feel as though they are entering the pictures. Double-page bridge illustrations show the gradual changes as the focus moves from one habitat to the next. Offering a wonderful opportunity for one-on-one sharing, this beautiful, interactive book encourages discussion, develops observation skills, and provides a learning experience that will bring children closer to nature.
Marlene Gawron, formerly at Orange County Library, Orlando, FL
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
PreS-K. Similar in approach and format to Cole's I Took a Walk (1998), this picture book provides young children with an introduction to wildlife near the seashore as they search the illustrations for individual animals and plants named in the text. A little girl, glimpsed only in an inset picture on the cover and on the title page, narrates as she walks to the beach on a summer morning. Along the way, she tells what she sees. In design, the left-hand page folds out to make a wide horizontal spread of the scene. Visual and verbal clues will help children (and adults) find the snowy egret, the prickly pear cactus, and the tracks in the mud, but kids can also check the last page for a smaller, labeled version of each picture and confirmation of identities. Cole's acrylic paintings include graceful landscapes as well as clear, close-up pictures of the smaller ecosystems. Parents looking for an early introduction to nature study will find this an informative offering with a playful approach. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

Henry Cole is the talented illustrator of more than forty books for children, including the New York Times bestselling The Leprechaun's Gold by Pamela Duncan Edwards, the nationally bestselling Little Bo by Julie Andrews, and many picture books written by himself, including On Meadow Street. A Nest for Celeste is his first novel.

Customer Reviews

Part guide book, part scavenger hunt, and part story book
Learning resource for the home library of nature lovers. This is a simple story of a short trip through the woods, to the salt marsh, to the dunes, and finally to the beach. Along the way readers are given a scavenger hunt like list of animals, plants, and natural objects to find in each fold-out, three-page spread. The artwork is detailed like that of a guide book, but also set within context. The last page has the answers with all the species identified. Karen Woodworth-Roman, Children's Science Book Review