Birds

Kevin Henkes and Laura Dronzek, who collaborated on the 1999 picture-book Oh!, team up once again for Birds, a lovely tribute to our avian friends. Narrated by a young girl (something revealed at the very end), the simple narrative highlights the diversity of bird life in the world, from owls to seagulls, songbirds to crows. Their frenetic energy, dizzying flight patterns, and mysterious comings and goings, are also described.

Less of a storybook, than a contemplative celebration, Birds pairs Henkes' text with Dronzek's gorgeous acrylic illustrations, and contrary to my expectations as a big Kevin Henkes fan, it was the artwork that really won me over. Whether depicting colorful songbirds all perched on the same tree, curious crows on show more their own page-sized color panels, or a winter landscape with a single bird, Dronzek's paintings just worked, perfectly capturing the brief snippets of text with which they were paired. I think my favorite was the scene in which a flock of birds all fly away from the same tree at once, creating a scene in which it looks like the tree is yelling "Surprise!" Definitely one young would-be ornithologists will want to peruse. show less

An utterly graceful mix of realistic elements, astute observations, poetry, and whimsy. Even the more complex/poetic bits are told simply enough for a very tiny child to understand, I think, which is fast becoming one of my most favorite things ever (e.g. what if all these colored birds' tails made trails in the sky? the telephone wire birds, the bird in winter, and of course, the observation about what it looks like when a bunch of birds in a tree fly away all at once is GENIUS). I so wish the art -- which is merely serviceable -- was as delicate and beautiful as the rest of the book, but, oh well.

Kevin Henkes is growing on me as a children's author, for real.

This book makes me happy. Throughout the bright pages, Henkes lyrically shares musings on birds while his wife, Laura Dronzek, matches them with perfect illustrations. Details such as the pink endpapers matching the blossoms on the title pages just add to the beauty of this book. The book begins with a bird “singing through the open window,” curtain blowing and blossoms on the tree outside. It continues by matching color words with a bird of that color and describing how they can be big or little. The font changes size for those words (big and little) to further illustrate their meaning and add dimension to the text. There are also nice touches such as the birds flying off the telephone wire so that when you turn the page, the wire show more is empty. There are lines that are poetic; for example, Henkes writes, “If birds make marks with their tail feathers when they flew, think what the sky would look like.” This is across two pages with a rainbow of brushes strokes covering the pages. The book ends full circle with the narrator sharing that while she can’t really fly, she can sing—this brings us full circle to the way the book began. I really responded to both the words and the illustrations in this book. My eyes take in the hues and my ears the sound of the words and my spirit actually feels lifted.

I would want preservice teachers to think about the ways that this book touches on concepts young children are learning (colors, size, seasons, types of birds), but not in a didactic or heavy-handed way. Its purpose is not to teach but rather to celebrate birds. The inclusion of those concepts helps make the book accessible to very young children without alienating older readers.

I would also want preservice teachers to discuss the structure of the text. This book does not tell a story. In many ways it works as a poem, or possibly even a set of very short poems. It works because it is simple; it allows the reader to fill in meaning and emotion for which the text and pictures create space.

Finally, I would encourage preservice teachers to consider the design features of the book, particularly the relationship between the words and the pictures on each page. On some pages the words are at the bottom, while on other pages, the words are in the middle. On still other pages the words appear on only one of the two-page spread while one illustration covers both. I want preservice teachers to think about why these decisions were made and what effect they have on the meaning readers make. The ultimate purpose of this, of course, is for them to have deeply considered all of these things so that they can lift the same (or other deeply considered elements) for discussion in their future classrooms. show less

The quality of illustrations in this book was impressive. Many of the illustrations were full page and grabbed the readers attention. I appreciated how the illustrations supported the text. For instance, when writing about a big bird the bird was drawn to the size of the page. Likewise, when referencing a small bird the image was about the size of my thumb. The illustrations also took various forms instead of maintaining one style throughout the book. This was refreshing and never dull. It almost seemed as if I was reading multiple books at once due to the variance in illustration styles. However, I felt the text lacked in comparison to the unique approach taken with the artwork. I found myself more intrigued in the book’s artwork show more than the actual story, which was simply about basic observations of birds daily lives and the author's admiration for the animal. show less

This book is appropriate for students in kinder and first grade. It explains that there are all types of birds in different shapes, sizes and colors. The illustrations are vibrant and simple and keep to the context of the story. The story also adds whimsical questions on where do birds go when it rains, or what the sky would look like if birds left their color in the sky. I like how simple this book is and it has a great deal of learning opportunities and projects that could come from it.

At first I wasn't crazy about this. I was comparing it to non-fiction books by [a:Ruth Heller|8265|Ruth Heller|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg], such as [b:How to Hide a Meadow Frog and Other Amphibians|518635|How to Hide a Meadow Frog and Other Amphibians|Ruth Heller|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1223663397s/518635.jpg|506560] with their detailed, accurate pictures and text. But that's not fair.

This is an introduction to the beauty of birds, and an homage to the joy they can add to our lives and the depth of feeling they can provoke in our souls.

Nothing is inaccurate - and the level of detail is that which is appropriate for Truth. You know, the Poetic Truth that is more authentic than simple facts, the show more facts you'd get from a book like [b:A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America|155840|A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America|Roger Tory Peterson|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172260544s/155840.jpg|150377].

I especially loved Dronzeks' illustrations that accompanied the text If birds made marks with their tail feathers when they flew, think what the sky would look like." And when the flock of starlings abruptly leaves their tree, "it looks like the tree yelled,'Surprise!'" I grinned in recognition as Henkes got that absolutely right.

You may not appreciate this book the first time you read it. Share it with your loved ones, or your day-care, or your High School Art or Poetry students. The more I think about it, look at it again, and read it aloud, the more I love it.

In a school or homeschooling setting I would definitely accompany this by non-fiction, for example maybe [b:Backyard Birds Of Summer|1147226|Backyard Birds Of Summer|Carol Lerner|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1181401614s/1147226.jpg|1134684]. Do a unit on poetry & art & ornithology & nature appreciation & ecology - your children will love it and learn a lot." show less

My son picked out this one at the library for reading, and it picked my curiosity when I saw it was by Kevin Henkes. The pictures in Birds are not in the same style as his other books however, in fact this book is illustrated by wife Laure Dronzek, in rich color, thick line.
While we both liked the pictures, I myself found the simple text quite interesting and full of surprises. My son actually ended up reading most of the text by himself, drawn in by the simplicity in the words and by the child like speculations taking place on the pages. And, maybe it's not so much a book about birds as it is musings spun from thoughts on birds.
This is a lovely, lovely, lovely book, which can be enjoyed on more than one level.