Gail Gibbons

The life cycle of the pumpkin, and its use in various autumn cultural celebrations, including Halloween and Thanksgiving, is explored in this non-fiction picture book from prolific children's author and illustrator Gail Gibbons. The diverse range of pumpkins, from the baby bear to the big max, is covered, as is the cultivation of pumpkins and the process whereby they grow from seeds to gourds. Their use in seasonal celebrations is explored, and the book closes with a guide on how to carev a show more pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern...

A good general introduction to the subject of pumpkins for younger children, The Pumpkin Book pairs a simple but engaging text with appealing illustrations that look to have been done in watercolor. Gibbons has produced many works of picture book non-fiction, but this is only the fourth I have read. Like the others, including the related Halloween Is..., I found it enjoyable, and think that it offers an interesting blend of ecological and historical information for younger elementary school students, which is the audience for which I would recommend it. show less

This book is gorgeous, intelligent, informative...I like a book that speaks intelligently and appealingly at eye level with toddlers and up (ages 3-103)!

...That is where I ended my review about an hour ago…but then here I am an hour later still thinking about this book that goes right to the scary (for many children and adults alike) heart of the subject and demystifies the spider. The author describes the ancient history of the spider, its life cycle, all the different types of webs that show more spiders spin (knitting patterns of spiders, if you will), the strength of the silk, how the silk helps trap its prey or helps it flee from its predators. The author gives the young reader an anatomy lesson whereby the reader learns the body parts and functions of the various body parts – and there is the added bonus of comparing the anatomy of the spider to the anatomy of other insects.

There are beautiful illustrations and explanations of different kinds of spiders, which ones are dangerous and where (what countries) they are indigenous. If you can make it through all 32 pages, you will even learn the true story of Little Miss Muffet and other interesting and true spider anecdotes!

So, actually, I came back to say, that this author should write a book demystifying prejudice and discrimination. But then I noticed that perhaps she did.

Thank you Edelweiss, Holiday House and Penguin Publishing Group for an ARC of the new and updated edition show less

Prolific children's author and illustrator Gail Gibbons, who specializes in non-fiction for the picture book set, here turns to the subject of unicorns, setting out the history of belief in these single-horned creatures throughout time and around the globe. She covers possible prehistoric as well as contemporary animals who might have inspired the legend—monoclonius, rhinoceros, narwhal—as well as the Indian legend of Risharinga (a horned youth), the Chines story of the ki-lin (which show more introduced the first writing to the people), and the Persian and Arab tales of the Karkaddan. The ancient Greek Ctesias' writings—the first written account of any unicorn—are explored, as are medieval European traditions, as the unicorn became a symbol for Christians.

Behold... the Unicorns! was an engaging read, and is the perfect book to put in the hands of younger unicorn fans who want more information about the subject, but aren't ready for a longer, more in-depth history of this magical creature. Everything covered in the book is covered very briefly, and is accompanied by Gibbons' appealing artwork, which looks to be done in watercolor. The only critique I would make of the book would be that there is no list of resources or further reading, which is a lost opportunity, I think. So many creatures and figures that might be unfamiliar to the child reader are introduced here—one of my own favorites, the Unicorns Tapestries at the Cloisters Museum, get a few pages—and it would have been good to have some place for children to go next, in order to continue to learn more. Leaving that aside, this is a good title for young unicorn lovers who want to learn more about the history of unicorns in the real world. show less

It's an arboreal extravaganza between the covers of Gail Gibbons' Tell Me, Tree, a comprehensive picture-book introduction to the world of our coniferous and deciduous friends. Starting with the basics - what is a tree, exactly? - the book goes on to explore the types of trees, their growth patterns and life-cycles, their anatomy, their all-important food production process (yay for photosynthesis!), and the means of identifying different species. Some ideas for creating a personal tree show more identification guide are included at the rear, along with some more detailed trivia.

Informative and engaging, Gibbons' book manages to capture the excitement and fascination of her subject, while also sticking to the facts. Her accompanying watercolor illustrations are engaging, although I think I agree with my friend Lisa (thanks for recommending this one!) in finding the images of trees and leaves more convincing than the depiction of humans. In any case, Tell Me, Tree is just an all-around excellent natural history title for younger children - early elementary school age - and is highly recommended to readers of that level with an interest in botany, and in the natural world. show less