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Listen, Listen
illustrated by
Alison Jay
Barefoot Books, 2007
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*Starred
review,
Booklist
*Board
book edition
*German,
Norwegian, Swedish,
Spanish, Finnish, Catalan,
and
Korean
editions
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| From
the book jacket: |
Listen,
listen...
What’s
that sound?
Insects
singing all around!
It could
be the calming buzz, buzz of
summer bees. Or perhaps it’s
the crunch and rustle of
autumn leaves underfoot.
Listen to insects chirping,
frogs croaking, squirrels
scurrying, hearths crackling,
boots clomping...the sounds
are all around you!
Phillis
Gershator’s rhythmic verse and
Alison Jay’s intricate
illustrations come together
beautifully to celebrate the
timeless sounds of the
seasons, from summer to
autumn, winter to spring.
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| A
little about the book: |
Listen, Listen
started as a book about fall,
beginning and ending with summer’s
insect songs. Editor and publisher
Tessa Strickland said, Why not a
book for all seasons? And our
collaboration began. We exchanged
seasonal thoughts, broke up the
original rhyme a bit, coordinated
our punctuation (!), and found
images to connect with pre-schoolers
on both sides of the Atlantic.
Artist Alison Jay told a story on
each glowing, jewel-like page and
Tessa added an engaging “can you
see” game at the end to create a
unique book for four seasons.
David
Gershator wrote a lilting tune for Listen, Listen.
You can hear it on our CD: "This Is
the Day! Storysongs &
Singalongs."
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From
the reviews:
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"In a spiritual and aesthetic
companion to Jay’s beautiful Picture
This (2004), the artist’s
work pairs with Gershator’s
simple, evocative rhyming imagery
to conduct viewers on a walk
around a small town as season’s
change. Jay’s stylized pictures,
with the texture of antique
frescos, are a window into a world
in which the buzz of an insect and
the whoosh of the wind lend
surprising emotion. Illustrations
filled with snowmen,
anthropomorphized animals, and
people running through a
leaf-swept field will make
children long to discover what is
just over a hill or around the
next bend. Capturing a summer
idyll reading in a hammock with
the same care as a warm evening by
the fireplace, Jay invests each
image with both joy and
melancholy. This jewel of a book
will draw children back again and
again." Starred review, Booklist
"In this ode to the
seasons, the sights and sounds of
a picturesque country village are
artfully evoked.... Jay's
crackled-varnish paintings have a
nostalgic, folk-art quality. The
rhyming, onomatopoeic text wraps
around the busy scenes, and the
words and art together provide a
smooth transition between the
seasons: 'summer's gone' is
illustrated with a swarm of
insects buzzing off the page. An
appended 'can you see' game
encourages close examination of
the changing landscapes. Children
will be inspired to 'listen,
listen' in their own
environments." Pick of the week, School
Library Journal
"Listen for the sounds of
the seasons in this lovely picture
book by Phillis Gershator and
Alison Jay. I have to admit that I
am partial to Alison Jay’s art,
and that’s what drew me to this
book. The spreads are full of
detail but they remain simple as
they depict each season’s coming
and going. The crackled look gives
the illustrations an old fashioned
feel that complements the
nostalgic tone of the book.... I
loved the way the illustrations
felt 'alive.' Almost like they
were moving. This movement worked
well with the simple rhythmic
text, which will work well with
preschoolers.
"A cool touch that makes this book
a great choice for one-on-one
sharing is the seek-and-find
activity at the end. Each season
gets a page with an illustration
and all the little things you can
find in that season. After reading
this book, take your observations
outside and see what you can find
in your neighborhood to tell you
what season it is for a simple
lesson for your littlest learners.
For slightly older students, you
might use the book as a
springboard for a writing
assignment by having them write
about what each season makes them
think of. Either way, this is a
winner." propernoun.net
"...Jay's magical and
occasionally eerie crackle-glaze
oil paintings furnish a visual
feast. The text is built around a
series of rhyming, gentle
directives to attune one's
ears....the richness and detail of
Jay's universe will utterly
captivate children. Ultimately,
the real journey in this book is
less about seasons and sounds than
where Jay's imagination takes her
and her audience." Publishers
Weekly
"...Here is a new twist on
teaching children about the
seasons. Often we count on our
eyes to be our main way of
understanding the world. But what
about our sense of hearing? What
sounds do we hear when autumn
comes? The crunch and rustle of
leaves underfoot, the honk of
geese flying south. And winter?
Boots clomping in snow, a
crackling fire. I love this book.
The illustrations are unique and
whimsical, and the rhythmic verse
is captivating and delightful. It
is great fun to read out loud,
letting the sounds of the words
roll off the tongue, so little
ears hear those sounds as well.
There are pages in the back that
ask children to find various
things in the seasonal pictures,
so there is double fun to be had
by all." Chinaberry
"Children and adults alike
will relish the playfulness and
sensuousness of the rhyming text
created by Phillis Gershator.
Equally pleasing are the
illustrations of Alison Jay....Listening can add breadth
and depth to our days if we only
would pay more attention to what
is going on all around in the
turning of the seasons." Spirituality
& Practice
And about the board
book edition:
"I enjoyed this oversized
board book. Kids love noises, and
this book is full of them, from
the noises the insects make in
summer, to the silent sounds of
winter. I can just hear young
children mimicking the sounds that
are read to them in this
delightful book.... An added bonus
at the end is an 'I Spy' like page
for each season.... Even though
this is a board book, usually for
babies, toddlers and preschoolers
will enjoy it as well. This is a
review for The Picnic Basket, so
this book receives a 4 - recommend
without reservation." www.writeforareader.blogspot.com
"Children
and adults alike will relish the
playfulness and sensuousness of
the rhyming text created by
Phillis Gershator. Equally
pleasing are the illustrations of
Alison Jay (I
Took the Moon for a Walk).
Listening can add breadth
and depth to our days if we only
would pay more attention to what
is going on all around in the
turning of the seasons. The last
section of this children's book
contains lists of what you can see
in summer, autumn, winter, and
spring. Try viewing your ears as
two portable altars and see how
this changes the quality of your
listening experience." Spirituality
and Practice. com
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Art by Alison
Jay
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