The book ends with the comforting scene of a human parent and child silhouetted in the welcoming lights of the house they approach: “Wherever you may be, you will always have a home with me.” Mature and baby animals are realistically depicted, although facial features appear to have been somewhat softened, perhaps to appeal to young readers. Illustrations of the habitats have an inviting luminosity. One example, of a blue whale who has homes in the north and south (ocean is implied), will help children stretch the concept into feeling at home in the larger world. “Home” might be a nest, a den, or a burrow. Additional facts about the animal appear in a smaller font, such as: “Beavers have transparent eyelids to help them see under water.” The gathering of land, air, and water animals includes a raven, a flying squirrel, and a sea lion. The narrative is written from the point of view of a parent talking to their child: “If you were a beaver, I would gnaw on trees with my teeth to build a cozy lodge for us to sleep in during the day.” Text appears in big, easy-to-read type, with the name of the creature in boldface. This reassuring picture book exemplifies how parents throughout the animal kingdom make homes for their offspring. (This book was reviewed digitally with 7-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at 53.3% of actual size.) Unfortunately, while most of the creatures from the seek-and-find appear in poses that match the illustrations in the challenge, not all of them are consistently represented. One page of backmatter offers a quick guide to eight easily confused pairs, and a second turns a subsequent exploration of the book into a seek-and-find of 15 creatures (and one dessert) hidden in the desert. As the story progresses, the colors of the sky shift from dawn to dusk, providing subtle, visual bookends for the narrative. Snappy back-and-forth paired with repetition and occasional rhyme enhances the story’s appeal as a read-aloud. Dark outlines around the characters make their shapes pop against the softly blended colors of the desert backgrounds. This picture book conveys the full narrative in spirited, speech-bubbled dialogue set on expressive illustrations of talking animals. As the ground squirrel (not to be mistaken for a chipmunk (even though Jack cheekily calls it “Chippie”) and Jack engage in playful discussion about animals, a sneaky coyote prowls after them through the Sonoran Desert. Jack is “no Flopsy, Mopsy, or Cottontail,” but a “H-A-R-E, hare!” Like sheep and goats, or turtles and tortoises, rabbits and hares may look similar, but hares are bigger, their fur changes color in the winter, and they are born with their eyes wide open. Is the mouse toying with Owl? Who knows?Ī funny tale about stress and an ever upping ante, with a comforting end.Ī hare and a ground squirrel banter about the differences between related animals that are often confused for one another. Sometimes the mouse is behind Owl or just out of his sightline other times, the mouse is on a solid, orange-colored page across the spread from Owl, which removes him from Owl’s scene in a rather postmodern manner. In simple illustrations with black outlines, textured coloring, and foreshortened perspective, Pizzoli plays mischievously with mouse placement. Not until he hunkers down in bed under the night sky (his bed is now outdoors, because the house’s roof and walls are gone), frantically clutching his pillow, does he see what readers have seen all along: a small, gray mouse. As Owl’s actions ratchet up-he destroys the roof and smashes the walls, all in search of the squeak-so does his anxiety. Under the floor? He pulls up his floorboards. Is it in the cupboard? He empties the shelves. Time after time, he pops out of bed seeking the squeaker. Bidding himself goodnight, he climbs into bed-and hears the noise again. Owl’s never heard that sound before, so he fastens his pink bathrobe and answers the front door. “Squeek!” says something underneath the bed. Owl leans back against his white pillow and headboard. Something is preventing Owl from falling asleep.
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