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Chrustowski, Rick
6 Reviews
(4)
PS
A fox parent guides its kit through its first year. When spring arrives again and it's time for the kit to "explore alone," the adult assures the youngster it can always come home. The second-person rhyming text is sweet if not particularly inspired. Watercolor and pastel illustrations evoke the beauty of the foxes' woodland home all year and cleverly integrate words into the scenery.
Reviewer: Katie Bircher
(3)
K-3
With simple text and cut-paper collages, Chrustowski traces one honeybee's journey from hive to meadow and back again, explaining how a scout bee uses a series of motions to communicate a harvest location. A brief afterword offers more information about the process, and the bright, broad illustrations offer enough detail for readers to identify every part of the bees.
Reviewer: Hannah Rodgers Barnaby
(3)
K-3
The first year of a young bat's life is presented through a pleasingly poetic narrative that skillfully incorporates essential bat facts. Realistic close-up colored-pencil and watercolor illustrations showing active bats in outdoor nighttime surroundings and different habitats will draw readers in. A "Bat Basics" page gives additional information about bats and the events described in the story.
Reviewer: Sethany Rancier Alongi
(3)
K-3
From cozy nest box in spring to a mid-summer storm, and on to the autumn chill that sends birds south, the life cycle of a bluebird family is described and pictured. The inviting illustrations accurately but softly portray the nest building, bright blue eggs, hatchlings, fledglings, and the pastoral landscape.
Reviewer: Hilary Breed Van Dusen
(3)
K-3
Bold double-page spreads rendered in watercolor and colored pencil illustrate this engaging, informative description of the life cycle of the leopard frog. Chrustowski's illustrations cover the year-long cycle: mating, tadpole life, adulthood, and hibernation. A page of "Frog Facts" at the back provides additional information.
Reviewer: Tamara DePasquale
(3)
K-3
From a beetle's-eye view, Chrustowski tells the story of a ladybug's journey from egg to larva to pupa to fully developed adult. The narrative describes the insect's changing physical characteristics, the predators it faces, and its defenses in each stage. The vibrant colored pencil illustrations provide realistic and animated close-up portraits. This is an engaging introduction to a familiar garden inhabitant.
Reviewer: Emma Loy-Santelli
6 reviews
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