Is a blueberry blue?

Is a crow black?

Is fire yellow?

Is snow white?

If you think you know,
then think --
and look again!

ANNOTATION

Encourages the reader to look at objects in nature from another perspective, observing their colors in a new way.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

About the Author:George Shannon has always felt close to frogs. "I was very frog-like when I was a kid," he says. "I was all long legs and long feet and nowhere to put them." Frogs have appeared in several of Mr. Shannon's previous books, includingApril Showers, illustrated by Jose Aruego and Ariane Dewey. In fact, the poet says he wrote the twenty-four poems in this book because he wanted the frogs inApril Showersto have more songs to dance to. He is the author of many books for young people, including three Stories to Solve books. George Shannon lives on Bainbridge Island, Washington.In His Own Words...

"It feels as though I have always been wrapped in stories and books. My parents read to me, and I in turn read to younger brothers. Books and family stories filled our home, and going to the library was as common as going to the market. I began writing stories when they were given as assignments in elementary school, but I came to enjoy the writing so much I began writing extra ones. Then I wrote even when there was no assignment at all. My dream of making books was so vivid I submitted my first "formal" children's manuscript to a publisher when I was sixteen. Eleven more years of school, work, reading, writing, and luck finally brought about Lizard's Song, my first children's book to be accepted.

"Looking back, it seems especially appropriate that Lizard's Song was my first book. Even though I had been writing for years, I always felt everyone else's life held better ideas for stories than mine did. I thought there was nothing about me that was interesting enough to make a good story. But I finallylearned what Lizard teaches Bear. My best stories come when I tell or sing about what makes my home. What I love. What I fear Things that have happened to me, and things I hope will happen. Things I like about me. Things I dislike about me. Things I'm starting to understand. Things that still confuse me. And, always, the books and art and friends that make me feel at home. So even though I am not a lizard, squirrel, or dancing frog, when you read my books you'll find little bits of what my heart calls home tucked inside the stories.

"My years as a children's librarian and, later, a professional storyteller continue to influence my writing, whether it is a collection of folktales like Stories to Solve or original stories like Dance Away and April Showers. I want my stories to sound as if-they are being told out loud with the rhythm of the words providing as much emotion as the words themselves.

"I also write many things few people ever see. Sometimes I begin a story but, as with a puzzle, can't find the missing piece. So I file it away to grow into another story at another time. I am also constantly writing letters and postcards to friends, and daily filling pages in my journal with anything that sparks my mind-all possible "missing pieces" for writing-puzzles yet to come.

"One of my favorite proverbs is "less is more," though that may seem odd for someone six feet four inches tall, with feet that need a size thirteen shoe. But I truly believe it. Distilled art forms like haiku and sculpture by artists like Isamu Noguchi and William Edmondson have always been my favorites. I believe books for young readers fall beautifully into this area as well. The challenge of sharing a story in as few words as possible and with a vital theme inside a "light-hearted" plot is one I sense I'll always enjoy as surely as I do reading."

FROM THE CRITICS

Children's Literature - Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz

Starting with "Pink is for crow," Shannon wants us to think differently about the colors in nature. For "when it has just hatched from its egg," a crow is pink. And "Black is for poppy...when we take the time to look inside." Red, green, purple, white, blue, yellow, brown, and orange all appear in unexpected places, depending on when and where we look. Not only a challenge to the usual cliches, this book should spur curious and creative youngsters to find their own different ways of seeing. Dronzek's acrylic paintings, often created as double-page scenes, are boldly stated in tensely colored hues, naturalistic but with the shapes of the turning leaves, the birthday candles, or whatever the subject may be pared down to basics. Standing alone as esthetic statements, they still provide the information needed to explain these unexpected comparisons. 2005, Greenwillow Books, and Ages 4 to 8.

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2-If Georgia O'Keeffe had made a book for young children, it might have looked like this one. Close-ups of natural phenomenon in a vibrant palette combine with strategic pacing to undo the viewer's preconceptions about color. This creative duo has selected 10 images with which to stage their drama. The minimalist text appears in black ink, except for the words that name the colors; they are enlarged and color-coordinated. Thus, the opening page depicts a black crow, but the text reads, "Pink is for crow-." The page turn reveals a spread showing a nest of newborn birds and the conclusion: "-when it has just hatched from its egg." In like manner, author and artist pair purple and snow, blue and firelight, yellow and pine trees. The disconnect between the written hue and the initial object, combined with the elliptical construction, allows older children to guess and predict the outcomes and younger ones to be surprised. The bold, uncluttered scenes, rendered in acrylics, have a sweetness and strength that is quite pleasing to the eye. Easy to read and fun to share, this paean to the wonder of cycles and the rewards of close observation is the perfect prelude to a thoughtful excursion. Fans of Shannon and Dronzek would also enjoy titles such as Tana Hoban's Look! Look! Look! (HarperCollins, 1988; o.p.) and N. N. Charles's What Am I? Looking Through Shapes at Apples and Grapes (Scholastic, 1994).-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.