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Searching... Hardwood Creek Library (Forest Lake) | PICTURE BOOK FLE | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
Discover the wonder of a day at the beach in this exuberant, rhyming picture book from the author of I Heart You and Sometimes Rain .
Grab a big bucket, your best pup pal, and a whole lot of imagination, and get ready for a day at the beach! There's endless fun to be had chasing the waves and countless treasures waiting to be discovered--first a sand dollar, then a sandpiper feather, even a sneaky little crab. What surprises will the ocean reveal next? This sandy, salty, seek-and-find picture book is perfect for families who love the water, kids who love collecting, and ocean enthusiasts of all ages.
Author Notes
Meg Fleming is the author of Sometimes Rain , I Heart You , Here Comes Ocean! , S ounds Like School Spirit , and Wondering Around . A former voice teacher, Meg draws on her love of rhythm, rhyme, and lyricism to create and imagine stories. She lives outside of San Francisco with her husband and three kids. Visit her at MegFleming.net.
Paola Zakimi spent all of her childhood and part of her youth in cold Patagonia, Argentina. Her independent nature led her to Buenos Aires. She studied arts and graphic design in Buenos Aires and lived there until 2007 when she moved to Villa Giardino, Cordoba, where she works as a full-time artist.
Reviews (3)
School Library Journal Review
PreS--While his parents set up provisions for a day at the beach, a small boy delights in collecting creatures and objects washed ashore by the waves. Accompanied by a black-and-white dog that sports a red polka dot bandana, the boy discovers a sand dollar. But that is only the beginning. With each repetition of the words, "What next? Who knows? Here comes ocean!" the waves supply new treasures, which are revealed on the following page. Digitally rendered illustrations, all double-page bleeds, depict the youngster, sometimes in close-up, examining and picking up objects, or running across the sand, or even with just a single foot visible. In one striking scene, he appears across a double spread, his upper body disappearing off the page as he bends over and reaches between his legs to retrieve a sandpiper feather. A red crab provides humor as it nibbles on the boy's feet or surveys each scene with expressive eyes. Text urges the youngster to "cool," "hide," "sink," or "plant" his toes as he collects his finds, until a large wave crashes in and scatters them. This brings dad running, and the boy and his parent observe the ocean together until the child falls asleep. VERDICT This first purchase is a perfect storytime choice to usher in the beach season, and the rhyming, repetitive text is simple enough to enable even the youngest children to chime in. A bonus: Youngsters will meet a few unusual ocean creatures, all of which are labeled on the endpapers.--Marianne Saccardi, Children's Literature Consultant, Cambridge, MA
Kirkus Review
Toes get quite a workout at the beach. Think about it--certainly Fleming has. On a sunshiny day, a family with two parents, one child, and a dog has the beach to itself. Always accompanied by a curious crab, the child and dog explore. Toes cool and splash in the water, dig and sink into the sand, cling to rocks, race from the incoming tide, and finally link with one another around the dad's back as the child falls asleep in his arms. Long kelp stems become "ropy lassos" and the dog's tug of war toy. As night falls, the action slows, and a bioluminescent scene emerges. "Moon beach. Night beach. Sparkly swish. / Wish upon a night-light fish." Scenes are described using short rhyming couplets with an interesting word pattern and the titular refrain, printed in an ever increasing font as the tide comes in and the sound of the waves crescendos until the two explorers are swamped by a large wave. "Too MUCH ocean!" Warm, realistic illustrations alternate between general beach scenes and close-ups of natural treasures like sand dollars, shorebirds, and tide-pool-dwelling starfish, algae, anemone, and barnacles. Illustrations on endpapers identify some of the creatures, but although many varieties are illustrated, kelp is the only algae named. The parents appear to be interracial, the mom's skin light brown and the dad's white; the child protagonist presents white. A seaside bedtime book capturing a delightful day of beach exploration. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
A family spends all day at a beach where a young boy and his dog discover many treasures in the sand. The simple text has a strong beat and pleasing rhyme. However, some of the phrases may puzzle the reader, such as "Sun beach. Rise beach" and "Salt beach. Breeze beach." The line "What next? Who knows? Here comes ocean!" is repeated several times, and the predictable words lend themselves to choral reading. The playful tones of the text are well supported by the bright color palette of the illustrations as well as the font design. The strength of the digitally rendered illustrations is the depiction of the ocean, which makes the reader feel the salt spray and displays the dynamic nature of the waves. There is one spread that shows sandpiper tracks viewed through the boy's legs as he bends over, which is a puzzling choice for perspective. Overall, a decent choice for larger picture-book collections or an ocean-themed toddler storytime.
