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Birdsong: A Story in Pictures: TOON Level 1 (TOON Books, Level 1)
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About Birdsong: A Story In Pictures: TOON Level 1
Product Description Bring the thrilling story of one red bird to life. When an innocent bird meets two cruel kids, their world is forever changed. But exactly how that change unfolds is up to you, in the tradition of Kamishibai—Japanese paper theater. The wordless story by master cartoonist James Sturm is like a haiku—the elegant images leave space for children to inhabit this timeless tale—and make it their own, leading them to learn an ultimate lesson they'll never forget. James Sturm is the author of several books for kids including the Adventures in Cartooning series (with Andrew Arnold and Alexis Frederick-Frost) and the forthcoming Ape and Armadillo. James also helped start a college for cartoonists, The Center for Cartoon Studies, in the small railroad village of White River Junction, Vermont. From School Library Journal K-Gr 2—In an author's note, Sturm (author, with others, of Sleepless Knight and Gryphons Aren't So Great) relates that the images for this nearly wordless book were originally created for a friend to perform on a folding kamishibai theater. The pictures tell the story of a boy and a girl who stomp and race through a wooded area, thoughtlessly tormenting the animals they come across. (They flip over a box turtle, whack a branch that a bird is sitting on and then chase the frightened creature.) Eventually, they rouse the ire of a bearded man on a mountaintop with a tridentlike spear in his hands, who turns the children into monkeys. As monkeys, the two soon find themselves running from a lion, then hunters, and end up under a big top, advertised as chimp children: "THEY READ! THEY WRITE!" The left side of each spread of this small, horizontally formatted book features a green and yellow leafy border on the outside and white space on the inside, which serves to frame and highlight the vibrant pen-and-ink images on the right-hand page. Most of the scenes are fairly simple, with telling details carrying the story forward. When the two creatures are eventually released into the wild, they are able to make amends with the animals they have mistreated. This is a story that is sure to garner interest and discussion. VERDICT Young fans of this publisher's graphic novels will recognize the familiar format and be eager to borrow this enchanting book.—Daryl Grabarek, School Library Journal Review Kirkus Reviews' Best Picture Books of 2016 Horn Book's Recommended Picture Books: Wordless Picture Books "A gorgeous wordless book with a snappy mood that seems to explicitly invite out-loud storytelling." - New York Times "For all its simplicity, an episode rich in drama, humor, pathos, and thematic depthwith plenty of latitude for verbal embellishment."- Kirkus Reviews STARRED REVIEW "Full of open-ended questions for readers to consider, it’s a haunting study in both empathy and storytelling itself." - Publishers Weekly "Sturm’s masterful grasp of the sequential art form is wonderfully on display here." - Booklist "Skillfully hand-inked and emotively colored." - The Horn Book Magazine About the Author Mr. James Sturm is a cartoonist. He lives in White River Junction, Vermont with his wife, two daughters, a chunky little dog named Chi Chi, and two rabbits. Besides making comics, James works at The Center for Cartoon Studies, a school for cartoonists.
