Review by New York Times Review
THE SEASONS OF THE YEAR tell a tale that resonates deep inside us. No matter where you start in the calendar, the passing of the seasons presents a beginning, middle and end that is hard-wired to our emotional metabolism. This applies equally to adults and children. A year is a drama in four acts. With a plot like that, you don't even need a story. The creators of three charming new picture books for children have taken shrewd advantage of the seasons as a framing device. In fact, none of the books do tell a story, but each is capable of sending a child on a vivid, sensate journey through the 12 months of the year. "Secrets of the Seasons: Orbiting the Sun in Our Backyard," by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld, is knowledge clothed in whimsy. Using a young girl as her first-person narrator, Zoehfeld has taken on the challenge of explaining to small children how the movements of the Earth around the sun create the seasons. The girl, her best friend, her parents, her little brother, her cat and two talking chickens ramble around a backyard, giddily noting the effects of the changing weather. Every few pages there is a pastel-colored diagram illustrating some complex physical phenomenon in outer space. Aided by the appealing illustrations of Priscilla Lamont, Zoehfeld's soft-touch meteorology lesson succeeds remarkably well. It may take several readings (or hearings) for children to fully grasp these basic operations of the universe, but grasp them they will. And several adults of my acquaintance, deprived of such elementary knowledge at a young age, would find "Secrets of the Seasons" to be an eye-popping revelation. "Hi, Koo! A Year of Seasons" is written and illustrated by Jon J Muth. As signaled by the pun in the book's title, it is intended to introduce children to the spare tradition of Japanese haiku poetry. Each of the book's pages features one of Muth's original haikus, grouped in four sections designated by season. Accompanying each haiku is an image of a day in the life of a panda bear named Koo and the boy and girl who are his unlikely human playmates. The illustrations are beautifully rendered by Muth in muted colors, with deft brush strokes that suggest the calligraphy of the Far East. The book also functions as a subtle alphabet primer. In each of the 26 haikus, Muth capitalizes a word beginning with the corresponding letter of the alphabet, so that as the seasons pass the capitalized words appear in alphabetical order from A to Z. Some of Muth's seasonal episodes are tender, some dreamlike, some goofily comic. Some are simply bizarre: In the "0" haiku, the eyes of Koo and his two friends are vacant squares. The haiku explains: too much TV this winter my eyes are square let's go Out and play The essence of haiku is simplicity. Considering this, "Hi, Koo!" has an awful lot going on. It follows the seasons; it teaches the alphabet; it tells happy, sad and cryptic anecdotes about a cute bear with not much personality. A child might be forgiven for wondering what the book is all about. But Muth's exquisite saturated watercolors more than compensate for its slightly muddled intentions. ANTHOLOGIES OF POETRY for young people are never in short supply (I've edited one myself). But "Firefly July: A Year of Very Short Poems" is a glorious example of the genre. Paul B. Janeczko has selected 36 poetic gems with an expert's ear, matching them ingeniously to the four seasons. As an example, Janeczko has included "Headline," by Cid Corman: A leaf on the doorstep - dont even have to pick it up to know the news. No mention of the season here. But plastered beside the text is a brilliant red maple leaf, instantly infusing Corman's words with autumnal mist and smoke. This marriage of verbal and visual imagery has the effect of making some familiar, even hoary poems suddenly seem utterly new. Hence, Langston Hughes's "Subway Rush Hour" becomes a summer poem, radiating the oppressive heat of underground New York City; Carl Sandburg's "Fog" brings a harsh Chicago winter to frigid life; and William Carlos Williams's ubiquitous "The Red Wheelbarrow" becomes the definitive poem of springtime, glisteningly fresh. The poems are short, accessible and child-friendly, but they are far from unsophisticated. Eve Merriam and Charlotte Zolotow are noted poets for children; Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost are not. And yet each of them, like every other poet in the collection, speaks directly to a child's early experience of the world. And in its pungently evocative presentation, it is easy to imagine the book inspiring a child to create a poem on his or her own. Janeczko has a brilliant accomplice in his act of literary reimagination. This is his illustrator, Melissa Sweet. Sweet's spectacular mixed-media illustrations seem poised to break free from the book's large pages. They are alternately delicate and bold, mistily atmospheric and scorchingly bright. Her touch combines the rigor of a mature artist and the scratchy abandon of a child. Best of all, they illuminate the poetry with genuine wit, intelligence and emotion. They are poems come to life. Name a season of the year and a flood of sense memories fills the mind and swells the heart. A good picture book works the same magic for children. These three authors have used the first device to achieve the second result. The books are completely different in tone and intent. Their only connection is their theme. But all three delight, inspire and, to varying degrees, educate. For children (and their parents), they present an inviting seasonal spread. JOHN LITHGOW, the actor and musician, is the author of nine children's books, most recently "Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo."
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [May 11, 2014]
Review by Booklist Review
First introduced in Zen Ties (2008) as Stillwater the panda's nephew, Koo is alone in the narrative world of this verse collection, until a boy and girl from the neighborhood knock on his door. They share good times throughout the seasons, whether throwing snowballs, reading aloud to sparrows, or skipping stones. And sometimes Koo enjoys reflective moments alone, becoming so quiet / Zero sound / only breath. These very short poems, ranging from fresh to poignant to prosaic, are enhanced by the beautiful watercolor-and-ink illustrations on every page. Reflecting the brevity and imagery of the verse, the spare fall and winter pictures seem particularly fine, while their relative simplicity contrasts effectively with the profusion of color in the spring and summer scenes. Besides pointing out the subtle trail of alphabetically arranged capital letters in each poem throughout the book, the author's note expresses Muth's rationale for not restricting himself to the five-seven-five syllable pattern that many of us grew up learning haiku must be. Haiku or not, this collection is worth reading.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Twenty-six gossamer watercolors celebrate the changing seasons with Koo, the young panda Muth introduced in Zen Ties (he's the nephew of Stillwater, Muth's famous panda sage). Each page features a haiku about an evocative moment (eating cookies, accidentally killing an insect) or small natural miracle (crocuses, fireflies), which, in turn, contains a word that begins with a letter of the alphabet. In the "D" haiku ("Dance through cold rain/ then go home/ to hot soup"), Koo mimics Gene Kelly, hanging off a street lamp and beaming in the rain; a second vignette shows Koo seated at the lunch table. White space is used to marvelous effect. On the "K" page, a cardinal sits on a branch against a backdrop of white, while Koo smiles from beneath it under a headdress of snow: "King!/ my crown a gift/ from a snowy branch." In spring, Koo frolics on a grassy hill, his stubby legs up in the air, then tickles a friend with a flower for "V" ("Violet petal/ caressing a cheek/ butterfly kisses"). It's a joyous addendum to the Stillwater books, and it overflows with the same characteristic tenderness. Ages 4-8. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 4-Muth, in his author's note, says "haiku is like an instant captured in words." Indeed, that is evident in 26 poems depicting images across four seasons, starting with fall. Muth's well-known panda, Koo, is depicted on a white background with just a touch of blue sky, looking up at swirling leaves: "Autumn/are you dreaming /of new clothes?" Koo, who begins alone, is soon joined by two children for the rest of the seasons. In the spring, birds alight on Koo, the girl, and on a branch held by the boy: "Quiet and still/long enough/for birds to make nests?" The color palette for the contemplative watercolors changes through the seasons, with a red-striped scarf and cardinal contrasting against the panda and the white snow. When a crown of snow falls on Koo he exclaims, "King!/my crown a gift/from a snowy branch." Muth's author's note also explains his variation from the traditional five-seven-five poetic form and invites readers to follow "an alphabetical path through the book by following the capitalized words in each haiku." While others haiku picture books include Andrew Clements's Dogku (S & S, 2007), Bob Raczka's Guyku (Houghton Harcourt, 2010), and Rita Gray's One Big Rain (Charlesbridge, 2010), no previous titles so cohesively capture the naturalistic spirit of Japanese haiku. Even readers who are not typically interested in poetry will be captivated by Muth's artistry in both words and images.-Julie R. Ranelli, Queen Anne's County Free Library, Stevensville, MD (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Twenty-six haiku are presented by young panda Koo, whom fans of Muth's Zen Ties will recognize as the haiku-spouting nephew of Stillwater, the Zen Buddhist panda from Zen Shorts and Zen Ghosts. Here, Koo is on his own, eventually joined by two human children who appear on his doorstep to play. The story told through the haiku follows the cycle of the seasons, from fall ("Autumn, / are you dreaming / of new clothes?") to winter ("snowfall / Gathers my footprints / I do a powdery stomp") to spring ("New leaves / new grass new sky / spring!") to summer ("Tiny lights / garden full of blinking stars / fireflies"). Muth's watercolors are as clear and translucent as the child-friendly, easily understood haiku, the gentle mood of his paintings perfectly matching the tranquil emotion of the poems. In an author's note at the front Muth explains his choice to forego the traditional five-seven-five syllable pattern and states that "a haiku embodies a moment of emotion that reminds us that our own human nature is not separate from all of nature." Each haiku contains just one capital letter, in order from A to Z; although the randomly capitalized words can look awkward, young readers may enjoy tracking the "alphabetical path" through the book. jennifer m. brabander (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Long before photography, poets took to haiku, the poetic equivalent of a snapshot, and painters, to the suggestive medium of watercolor to capture the essence of moments in nature. Caldecott Honoree Muth (Zen Shorts, 2005) employs both, with the help of his playful panda Koo, to present 26 moments through the seasons. Though light in tone and geared toward pre-reader eyes and interests, the mostly outdoor scenes Muth depicts command serious attention from all. The first page simultaneously demonstrates both Muth's adherence to haiku's three-line form rather than its traditional five-seven-five syllabic sequence and his exquisite use of white space. "Autumn, / are you dreaming / of new clothes?" reads the text as Koo reaches up to try to catch a handful of falling leaves. One of the few scenes referencing indoor living hilariously comes in early spring: "too much TV this winter / my eyes are square / let's go Out and play." Two children and Koo stand in front of a large television, the whites of the children's eyes boxed and zombielike and Koo's, two solid black squares. A more reflective, deeply moving spring moment finds the children alone with a book in the woods, Muth's delicate watercolor and subtle inking deftly suggesting the forest's shifting scope. Throughout, condensed poetic image coupled with spare illustration yields huge effect; in a word, magical. (Picture book/poetry. 3 up)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
