Searches

*Starred Review* The changing seasons have been the subject of many a picture book, but this one has a particularly unique take on the topic. Each season is explored in terms of how it encompasses colors. In the spring, "Red sings / from treetops . . . / each note dropping / like a cherry / into my ear." Green "peeks from buds," and yellow "slips goldfinches their spring jackets." Succeeding seasons offer other opportunities for the colors to spread their particular magic. In summer, "white clinks in drinks." The blue in water takes on many names: "turquoise, azure, cerulean." Sidman also brings other senses to the fore. Old leaves and crushed berries smell purple. And though one might not associate pink with winter, it "prickles: / warm fingers / against cold cheeks." All of these evocative images are matched in the imaginative illustrations. Stylized figures, intricately costumed and crowned, walk, run, and sail through Zagarenski's artwork. You'll find one in a tree picking juicy red apples and another set against an expanse of white, building a snowman. Throughout, the mixed-media illustrations, including collage and paintings on wood, provide much to look at. And as the title implies, the colors that surprise on every page do sing. Sidman rejoices in the way colors, and how we perceive them, change with seasons. In spring, shy "Green peeks from buds" while "Yellow shouts with light!" In winter, "Green waits / in the hearts of trees." Zagarenski's richly patterned mixed-media spreads add texture and extend the imagery, sustaining the playfulness of the text and its senses of awe, mystery, and beauty. PreS-Gr 3 Through the seasons, this book personifies colors, starting with a red bird in early spring and concluding with it as winter ends. "In SPRING,/Red sings/from treetops:/ cheer-cheer-cheer ,/each note dropping/like a cherry/into my ear." At first Green is shy, but in summer "Green is queen." "In fall, Yellow grows wheels/and lumbers/down the block,/blinking:/ Warningclassrooms ahead ," and in winter "Gray and Brown hold hands." Sidman encourages readers to experience color with all of the senses. Some of Zagarenski's mixed-media paintings are full of light and others are darker and slightly haunting, but the rich colors come to life on the page. The words and pictures depend upon one another and blend well to conjure up quirky, magical imagery. Children will find many small stories waiting to be told within the detailed paintings and enjoy looking at them over and over. This poetic tribute to the seasons will brighten dull days. Julie Roach, Cambridge Public Library, MA