1. BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Florian, Douglas. 1994. BEAST FEAST. San Diego: Harcourt Brace, Inc. ISBN 015295178-4
Florian, Douglas. 1994. BEAST FEAST. San Diego: Harcourt Brace, Inc. ISBN 015295178-4
2. PLOT SUMMARY
BEAST FEAST is a collection of twenty-one (21) pairs of poems and paintings about animals, insects, and birds. The following animals are included: anteater, ants, armadillo, barracuda, bat, boa, camel, caterpillar, chameleon, firefly, grasshopper, kangaroo, kiwi, lobster, mole, pigeon, rhea, sloth, toad, walrus, and whale. The poems are “silly”, humorous, and quirky. The pictures match the rhymes and they often leave room for further explanation by the reader. The illustrations are as funny as the poems; Florian did an excellent job with both the poems and illustrations.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The book is one of the 1996-97 Texas Bluebonnet Award nominees. There seems to be no rhyme or reason for the order of text. And, obviously one poem is not directly (or indirectly) connected to the next. One could begin and end the reading at any point without losing any of the meaning. Although he book may be informative, it seems to be written for the enjoyment of reader and listener. It is most fun when read aloud.
There are full-page illustrations that are similar to a picture book. A table of contents helps the reader locate specific “beasts”.
BEAST FEAST is the winner of the 1995 Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award and is an ALA Notable Children’s Book.
BEAST FEAST is a collection of twenty-one (21) pairs of poems and paintings about animals, insects, and birds. The following animals are included: anteater, ants, armadillo, barracuda, bat, boa, camel, caterpillar, chameleon, firefly, grasshopper, kangaroo, kiwi, lobster, mole, pigeon, rhea, sloth, toad, walrus, and whale. The poems are “silly”, humorous, and quirky. The pictures match the rhymes and they often leave room for further explanation by the reader. The illustrations are as funny as the poems; Florian did an excellent job with both the poems and illustrations.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The book is one of the 1996-97 Texas Bluebonnet Award nominees. There seems to be no rhyme or reason for the order of text. And, obviously one poem is not directly (or indirectly) connected to the next. One could begin and end the reading at any point without losing any of the meaning. Although he book may be informative, it seems to be written for the enjoyment of reader and listener. It is most fun when read aloud.
There are full-page illustrations that are similar to a picture book. A table of contents helps the reader locate specific “beasts”.
BEAST FEAST is the winner of the 1995 Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award and is an ALA Notable Children’s Book.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL review: “Grade 1-4-A colorful and clever assemblage of 21 animals, from the walrus ("The pounding spatter/Of salty sea/ makes the walrus/Walrusty.") to the kiwi ("Wings so small./No tail at all./ Very rare./Feathers like hair./Quiet and shy./Cannot fly./They call you a bird,/But I don't know why."). Each brief poem employs an Ogden Nashian twist of language, a small surprise, or a happy insight into the familiar. The book's design is as appealing as the verses themselves, pairing each selection with a full-page, splashy, bordered watercolor. Large type, surrounded by plenty of white space, will appeal to younger readers. This collection is an uncluttered, short presentation by an author/illustrator who knows what children will find funny-add to that the bonus of factual information tucked into each poem, and the result is a winner. It's easy to imagine readers becoming inspired to write and illustrate their own poems after spending time with Florian. Clearly a wonderful book.Lee Bock, Brown County Public Libraries, Green Bay, WI”
BOOKLIST review: Ages 4-8. Twenty-one animals are each the subject of both a watercolor painting and a poem. Brief and largely humorous, the poems often make rhymes or puns with the animals' names. Read aloud, they reveal skilled alliteration--"The anteater's long and tacky tongue is snaking from its snout." The humor, in words and pictures, will win young children: "The caterpillar's not a cat. / It's very small / And short and fat." The accompanying picture, located on the facing page, shows a caterpillar that has eaten a cat-shaped piece from a large green leaf. Mary Harris Veeder
BOOKLIST review: Ages 4-8. Twenty-one animals are each the subject of both a watercolor painting and a poem. Brief and largely humorous, the poems often make rhymes or puns with the animals' names. Read aloud, they reveal skilled alliteration--"The anteater's long and tacky tongue is snaking from its snout." The humor, in words and pictures, will win young children: "The caterpillar's not a cat. / It's very small / And short and fat." The accompanying picture, located on the facing page, shows a caterpillar that has eaten a cat-shaped piece from a large green leaf. Mary Harris Veeder
5. CONNECTIONS
This is another excellent Read-Aloud book, especially for students in kindergarten and Grade 1. Because the collection of “animals” exclude (I am sure by design) some common “pets”, each student could be asked to choose an animal and to write a short poem (with a simple illustration) about that animal. The teacher could screen the poem to make sure that an assortment of pets is chosen. This collection could then be read aloud by each student and collected to make a class collection of beasts.
No comments:
Post a Comment