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Summary
Summary
Against the rhythmic background of turning seasons, a little fox learns that there is a time for everything. The rain, the clouds, the days all come and go as the little fox, guided by his wise and loving parents, learns to hunt on his own and bury his food, cover his trail and run like the wind. Now he is ready to go out on his own.
As depicted by an award-winning pair, the gentle story of the rearing of a baby fox, together with sensuous illustrations, takes readers on a journey deep into the woods to tell a tale that all will recognize - that of growing up and moving out.
Author Notes
Author Kate Banks and illustrator Georg Hallensleben have collaborated on several books, including And If the Moon Could Talk , winner of the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, The Cat Who Walked Across France , Baboon , Close Your Eyes , and The Night Worker , winner of the Charlotte Zolotow Award. Banks lives in the South of France with her husband and two sons. Hallensleben lives in Paris.
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Frequent collaborators Banks and Hallensleben compose an appealing, idealized story of a young fox eager for independence. As the seasons shift, the kit's watchful parents teach him how to survive in the wild. Although this is a forest tale, anthropomorphism creeps in. The fox is an only offspring, not one of a litter, and his parents instruct him according to traditional gender roles: "The little fox is hungry./ His mama shows him how to find blackberries./ His father shows him how to catch rodents and birds." (The spread shows a blackberry bush; readers never see the foxes killing or eating animals.) Each time the kit learns something new, he asks, "Am I ready?" and his parents reply, "Not yet" or "Soon." These questions lend suspense, yet the narrative avoids threats. When the fox hears baying hounds, his knowing father calls him "deeper into the forest,/ far from danger," and readers sense that the woods may be more hazardous than the book demonstrates. This tidy wilderness portrait is nonetheless seductive: Hallensleben handles outdoor scenes with finesse, and his signature scuffled layers of brushwork mesh with Banks's evocative prose. The foxes' flame-orange coats, described as "the color of burnished leaves," complement mossy greens and sky blues. In beautiful pictures and prose, Banks and Hallensleben provide a safe story, maintaining the illusion that the "little fox" can be cuddly and self-sufficient. Ages 3-6. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
(Preschool) The accomplished picture book team (And If the Moon Could Talk, rev. 3/98) gently addresses growing up in the story of a little fox. In early spring, a baby fox is born, and he must wait for the time when he can venture out of the cozy den. ""Am I ready?"" he asks. ""No, fox, no,"" warns his mother. As spring turns to summer and summer to fall, his parents take him outside and teach him to find food, hide from his enemies, and ""run like the wind."" Then one day, ""as the orange sun leaves the sky, like a big goodbye, the little fox goes. And the mama fox knows...that he will be fine."" As in previous books, Banks's soft lullaby text speaks directly to young children, reassuring them that growing up happens naturally, one important step at a time. Hallensleben's signature paintings depict lush surroundings in rich, natural colors, while his simple, solid animal figures express human emotion, often looking directly at the viewer. Another lyrical Banks-Hallensleben picture book with a strong parent-child connection, perfect for sharing at bedtime. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
As in The Great Blue House (2005), Banks and Hallensleben offer another atmospheric picture book that celebrates seasonal change. In an earthen den, a baby fox is born. The shifting seasons mark the fox's growth: in spring, the little fox wonders when he can go outside; in summer, while hunting with his parents, he wonders when he can roam on his own. Finally, in fall, the little fox has learned to care for himself, and his parents send him off with sweet encouragement. Banks' spare, sensory words include some sophisticated imagery (burnished leaves ; a bloated sun) that will be a reach for some preschoolers. With lulling rhythms and poetic phrases, Banks reinforces the deeply reassuring tone: trees sigh like a lullaby setting the world at ease and silence grows into a peaceable hum. Illustrated with Hallensleben's rich, thickly brushed scenes of the nurturing fox family exploring fields and woods, Banks' gentle story sends a message that independence, whether for a fox or a child, is as natural and inevitable as the turning of the seasons. --Gillian Engberg Copyright 2007 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-Born on a spring day, a baby fox is taught the necessary survival skills by his patient parents. The kit is eager to explore the world on his own and asks from time to time, "Am I ready?" "No, fox, no," is the reply. In the fall, a more competent creature doesn't ask, but states, "Now I'm ready," and his mother responds, "Go, fox, go." The lyrical text reads easily, and one slightly changed sentence is repeated throughout: in the spring, "And the rain comes and goes"; at night, "And the stars come and go"; and in the fall, "And the days come and go." Rich, saturated colors fill the spreads with the seasons' deep hues as they depict the young animal's progress toward independence. Van Gogh-like sweeps of color indicate tall grasses, while splotches of paint deftly reveal the changing hues of leaves and sky. The endpapers show a silvery landscape bathed in moonlight. This picture book is a tender tribute to family.-Maryann H. Owen, Racine Public Library, WI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
The team behind The Great Blue House (2005) bestows yet another treat, this time tracing the maturation of a fox pup from his spring birth to fall, as he leaves his parents. Banks's patterned, ruminative text pares great planetary cycles down to toddler-friendly essences: "And the rain comes and goes. / And the little stream grows into a rolling river." Later: "And the stars come and go. / And the crescent moon grows into a big round ball." Within this larger arc, the little fox learns to hunt, forage, shelter and store food. His eager missteps are gently corrected: " 'No, fox, no,' says his mother. / 'You're not ready,' says his father." Finally, "as the orange sun / leaves the sky, like a big goodbye," the little one takes his leave, his coat equally ablaze against the glowing sky. Hallensleben's lush, brushy landscapes of sunny greens and moonlit blues, his coppery, winsome fox pup and Banks's wise, spare lines combine for a package sure to gratify preschoolers and caregivers alike. (Picture book. 2-6) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
