Gideon Sterer

Any kid that is being forced to share will appreciate this mischievous story about a diligent little bird and the animals who keep appropriating her nests.

A small yellow bird is just finishing her perfect nest... when she discovers it has been co-opted by a hoopoe! "You can build another" he says. Slightly annoyed, the bird builds another from scratch... and a fox takes it! Another nest, built by an even more annoyed bird, gets taken over by a warthog! The story builds to a ridiculous scene show more with the tree full of nests and Bird loses it and evicts EVERYONE. Sadly, this destroys all her nests and when she looks miserably at the resulting chaos, saying "this WAS my nest" the animals feel guilty - and build a huge nest, just for her. Bird kindly invites them all to share the new nest, and in a last aside builds her own cozy little nest away from the snoring animals!

I felt like this was a different art style than the work I've seen before from Tsurumi; it still has that cartoon humor, but it's more sketchy and realistic and less of the minimal lines and figures of her other work. It's also one of my newest, favorite books and a hilarious take on the Little Red Hen, even if nobody besides me gets it. It always drives me crazy that most of the retellings take out the original ending and have her sharing, even though the animals did none of the work! The outraged bird and her charging buffalo was deeply satisfying - especially when the animals fixed their mistake and all ended happily! And the part where Bird gets her own nest in the end! I can't wait to add this one to my storytime repertoire and to my funny read-alouds that are kind of naughty list!

Verdict: A much more nuanced view of sharing, perfect for kindergarteners and some preschoolers who can think about sharing as more complex than just "give the other kid what they want because they asked." There's also the additional element of identifying the different animals! It's ridiculous, satisfying, and funny - all the things needed for the perfect storytime book.

ISBN: 9780735228276; Published March 2019 by Dial; Review copy provided by publisher; Donated to the library show less

First sentence: If you make a call on a banana phone, somewhere deep in the jungle...a gorilla will probably answer. And if they do, they will have some questions, Like, Who are you? and Why are you calling? If you'd like, you can tell the gorilla your name. If you are calling just because, that's okay. But it is good to be interesting and share some things, like your favorite color or sandwich or joke. If you make a gorilla laugh on a banana phone, they will probably like that very show more much--there aren't many jokes in the jungle, and they might wonder more about you.

Premise/plot: This book imagines what MIGHT happen if you should make a call on a banana phone (and who hasn't made a call on a banana phone?!?!) It is written in second person.

My thoughts: I love, love, love this one. I do. I love it because it celebrates imaginative play. I love it because it celebrates the wonders and joys of imagination. I love that it is extended imaginative play. It keeps asking what might happen next....and next....and next....and next. I love how so much of the story is told THROUGH pictures.

I think this one would be great for sharing with young readers. Parents, grandparents, teachers, librarians. I do think teachers could do extension activities with this one. Young readers could become young writers and write imaginative stories of their own. They can write their own adventures if they call on a banana phone. show less

A girl on a tin can phone on the title page sets the tone for the rest of this cheerfully absurd, alliterative, rhyming story of a group of kids traveling from house to house: "Climb to Cal's, Whirl to Will's, Trampoline from Ted's to Jill's...). Their ultimate project? Building a rocket so they can "Launch to Lou's!"

When her fisherman-grandfather moves in with her family in the city, a young girl soon realizes that he misses his favorite occupation, and attempts to console him with a game of 'pretend' fishing from their apartment fire escape. Soon they're catching all kinds of unexpected fish, from Litterfish to Laundry Eels, but trouble isn't long to follow, and the pair must cease and desist. Fortunately for them, there's always swimming (AKA: walking)...

Author Gideon Sterer's debut picture-book, show more Skyfishing is a celebration of the power of imagination, and its important role in providing us an outlet for our emotions, particularly when we are feeling down. I appreciated both the imaginative play engaged in by the girl and her grandfather, and the obviously loving bond between the two of them. The artwork by Argentinian illustrator Poly Bernatene, whose witchy picture-books - Which Witch's Wand Works?, When Witches' Wands Won't Work - are such a pleasure, is colorful and appealing, capturing the fun of the 'fishing' game the two main characters are engaged in, and the affection shared between the two. The end-papers - the front ones are a sort of collage, with clippings about fishing, the rear decorated with child-like cartoon drawings - are a nice touch, highlighting both the grandfather and granddaughter's perspective. Recommended to anyone looking for new picture-books about the imagination, and a child's relationship with a grandparent. show less