Available:*
Library | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|
Searching... Hardwood Creek Library (Forest Lake) | EASY LAW | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Hardwood Creek Library (Forest Lake) | EASY LAW | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Oakdale Library | EASY LAW | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | EASY LAW | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | EASY LAW | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | EASY LAW | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Stillwater Public Library | EASY LAW | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Wildwood Library (Mahtomedi) | EASY LAW | Searching... Unknown |
Bound With These Titles
On Order
Summary
Summary
"A flea asleep / in the deep green moss / nettled by midges / wakes up cross, / starts to fidget / and turn and toss." Then his "lever-legs twitch" and he LEAPS into the path of a grasshopper. Which so startles the grasshopper that, she, in turn, LEAPS onto a bunny. And so it goes, dog, fish, bullfrog, horse and dog again, each leaping and upsetting the next. Until the dog finds herself in that same deep green moss. The flea sees his chance and leaps onto the dog. And, at last, they both fall asleep!Award-winning JonArno Lawson's delightful circular story poem is a playful romp, much like a game of tag. With its rollicking rhythm and a rich array of action words --- besides leaping, the animals lunge, plunge, bound, gambol and lurch, for example --- this book will inspire and encourage children to move, making this an excellent introduction to the power of language. Award-winning Josée Bisaillon's beautiful mixed-media collage art provides visual motion and energy in tune with the rhyming narrative. This is a perfect book for a dynamic read-aloud sure to invite active listening. It's also just the right combination of engaging story and art that will encourage pre-readers to repeat the fun and silly story all on their own. Small children are fascinated by leaping creatures, making this an enjoyable exploration of animal behaviors and habitats from pond to field, with seven different leaping animals in all.
Author Notes
JonArno Lawson lives in Toronto with his wife and children. In addition to Think Again, he is the author of several other books of poetry for children and adults, and has twice won the Lion and the Unicorn Award for Excellence in North American Poetry.
As a young girl, Josée loved drawing cats and houses. She really enjoyed school and always returned home full of stories to tell (and, of course, to draw!). She liked being in the classroom so much that she pursued her education all the way to university, where she studied graphic design. It was there that she fell in love with the occupation of illustrator.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-A flea sets off a chain reaction in this circular story poem that sees, by turns, a grasshopper, bunny, dog, fish, frog, and horse all take a startled "LEAP!" amid their respective areas of a sun-dappled farm. Lawson's sprightly rhyming text scans easily, and the rhythms of each stanza make it ideal for reading aloud: "trudgening lightly,/croaking and nervous,/over the top of the/ rippling surface-/webbed feet flatten,/cheeks re-fatten,/legs stretch long to/LEAP!" Bisaillon's mixed-media artwork showcases the defining attributes of each creature; elegant lines define the grasshopper's lithe form, a softly textured paper is used for the white bunny, and rich and layered shades of green and brown show off the frog's regal shape. After much commotion, things come full circle from the initial "leap" when the flea finds the dog and both "hunker down to/sleep." VERDICT A playful story with lyrical text and charming illustrations that will work beautifully as a read-aloud and could easily be adapted into a rollicking readers theater production.-Kiera Parrott, School Library Journal © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
In appropriately propulsive verse, Lawson (Sidewalk Flowers) creates a chain of leaping animals, starting with a flea that awakens from a nap "in the deep green moss." The flea lands in the path of a grasshopper, who jumps onto a rabbit, whose startled leap sets off a dog: "The bunny bounds out as the clouds roll in./ A dog gets a whiff and barks at the wind-/ bouncing, bouncing, springing and lunging!/ Down the bank that dog goes plunging." Lawson times each leap to a page turn-his blithe verse almost demands to be read faster and faster with each progressive jump-creating a crescendo of energy that eventually abates as the dog and flea nestle down in the moss, not to leap but to do something that rhymes with it. Bisaillon (Mom, Dad, Our Books, and Me) uses digitally collaged elements, watery bursts of bright color, and a slightly jittery line to create a radiant summery landscape for Lawson's bounding cast, which also includes a fish, frog, and horse. Expect children to show off their own joyful jumps after hearing this one. Ages 3-7. Illustrator's agency: Morgan Gaynin. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
A flea awakened by midges takes a "leap!" into the path of a grasshopper, activating a series of jumps by a rabbit, dog, frog, etc. The flea reappears for the final leap then nestles back to sleep, bringing the poetic text full circle. The summery landscape and its animal denizens are depicted in the mixed-media illustrations with a liveliness that echoes the energy of the active-verb text. (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Creatures great and small spring into action on a sunny day.With a determined cadence and a graphic bang, Lawson and Bisaillon wed their talents in presenting a sumptuous snapshot of nature on the go. Lawson's animated poem starts small with an irritated flea's decision to "LEAP!" that then leads to other creatures making similar jumps in a great crescendo of movement that climaxes when a horse leaps a fence before things return full circle to the flea at rest. Motivated by the irresistible impulse to move, the flea hops "into the path / of a little grasshopper," who then lands on a bunny, who "bounds out / as the clouds roll in," inspiring a dog to jump into a lake and scare the fish "wide awake," as they "break the surface with a / flip, flop, shake" and "knock off a bullfrog's / lily-pad crown" as he springs and lands right "next to the nose / of a high-strung horse," who rears back from taking a drink of lake water, andone gets the idea. Bisaillon's vibrant, watercolor-inspired mixed-media illustrations capture the fullness of the domino effect of Lawson's action-packed lyric, vibrantly showcasing the interconnectedness of flora, fauna, sun, and sky. Like a ball rolling downhill, the combined momentum of verse and page turn should impel pre-readers to leap and then sleepbut not before demanding that those reading to them repeat: not to be missed. (Picture book. 3-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.