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Vulture View by April Pulley Sayre illustrated by Steve Jenkins

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To anyone who thinks writing for children is "easy", let them try to match Vulture View in content, simplicity, rhyme, and rich vocabulary. April Pulley Sayre has done a masterful job of incorporating all these elements into this book which is beautifully brought to life by Steve Jenkins' paper-cut collage illustrations. Even though each page contains a limited amount of text, Sayre manages to teach a lot about turkey vultures; what they eat, what they don't eat, how they find their food, when they look for it, and how they clean up after eating. And vocabulary! How often does a K-2nd grade child hear the words reek, tilt, seek, fragrant, and preen? The rhyme and gentle rhythm of the text make this book a great read-aloud. A big thumbs up for Vulture View!

Comments

Anonymous said…
Next time I am having a bad day, I am going to read the first line of your review. May I be totally biased and say you write excellent reviews? :-)
I'm glad you like Vulture View. I enjoyed watching vultures and hawks soaring as I drove through Utah last year.

Perhaps I will visit schoolchildren in your state next year. Charlesbridge, the publisher of my new book, Trout Are Made of Trees, is having a nationwide environmental project/art project contest for K-3. The winner gets a school visit from me.
www.aprilsayre.com
January 27, 2008 at 7:40 AM
lw said…
Great review, Nycole! I never think of stuff like the vocabulary building aspect of a very interesting book.
January 28, 2008 at 10:12 AM
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