March 30, 2020
In this standalone follow-on to What Color Is Night?, a narrator invokes early morning sounds as the world begins to stir. Economical sentences draw attention to noises that are easy to overlook: “Lights click on,/ a cat softly creeps” reads one spread as dawn reddens the sky above houses shrouded in darkness. Snider’s spreads, splashed with brilliant, milky hues on matte paper, have the feel of silkscreen images. As “the silent sun rises,” loose lines pick out trees and soft human silhouettes, taillights on cars and trucks, a cityscape. One page zooms in on a single household (“A shower trickles,/ a mirror squeaks”); another lends appreciation to a garbage truck on a silent block. Throughout, scenes portray beauty in even the most banal examples of a built environment, such as anonymous, office-like buildings whose windows reflect the sky and whose lawn blooms with flowerlike jets: “Sprinklers hiss on summer lawns.” Concluding with an invitation to “throw open the window// and fill the world with your song,” Snider’s creation uncovers everyday wonders by re-creating a single sense with language, form, and color. Ages 2–4. Agent: Judy Hansen, Hansen Literary.
May 1, 2020
Toddler-PreS-In the first light of the morning, all is quiet...or is it? What sounds are made in the morning? Listen closely, and you will hear the sound of lights clicking on, cats slowly creeping, the wind whispering in the leaves, a rooster crowing, and an old dog yawning, just awake from a dream. Morning also brings the sound of a baby babbling, sprinklers hissing on summer lawns, frogs croaking and splashing in a murmuring stream, and breakfast sizzling as hopeful paws tap the floor. The world is waking while the silent sun slowly rises. Snider explores both the unique and the universal sounds and silent routines that each new day brings. Simple text accompanies bright, warm illustrations to form a calm, moving book that is the perfect morning read-aloud, ensuring a gentle and positive start to any day. VERDICT A beautiful companion to Snider's What Color is Night? that encourages readers to slow down, greet the day, and fill the world with their own songs.-Elizabeth Blake, Fields Corner Library, Dorchester, MA
Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
May 1, 2020
Preschool-G In this companion to What Color Is Night? (2019), Snider contemplates the sounds (and silences) of morning. "In the first morning light, all is quiet. / Or is it? / Listen. / What sound is morning?" Although dawn appears still at first, a closer listen reveals subtle sounds: birds chirping, alarm clocks ticking, cats creeping, babies babbling, the wind whispering, and sprinklers hissing. After a rooster crows, the noises become more obvious: a man shouts at a departing bus, stomachs grumble outside a bakery, and frogs croak in a stream. As more people awaken, the clamor becomes more pronounced: a shower sprays, garbage trucks clank, and breakfasts sizzle. Snider's lyrical text is accompanied by digitally enhanced full-bleed spreads that feature thick-outlined shapes and a color palette that brightens as morning progresses. Shapes are simple but realistic, and listeners will enjoy locating the subtle details in the art. With large-font text displayed in a range of colors to ensure legibility, this will be welcomed as a read-aloud or for units on the senses.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)
Starred review from April 1, 2020
Each day begins with riotous noise. Listen! As sunrise's gentle rays set the landscape ablaze, a new day is ushered in with a harmonious aural feast. Cue the ante-meridiem orchestra for the melodies of birdsong, yawning dogs, buzzing alarm clocks, clicking light switches, gurgling babies, whistling wind, crowing roosters, the cacophony of zooming traffic, and much more. This sweet, simple story will awaken young listeners' imaginations to a world of early-a.m. wonders. The economic prose, occasionally rendered in rhyme and near rhyme, flows gently and well and will help kids happily recognize what goes on before and after they awaken. The book makes a fine springboard into laptime, classroom, and library-programming activities, as youngsters can be challenged to identify and/or illustrate morning noisemakers they're familiar with in their homes and neighborhoods. Bold illustrations burst from the pages and are filled with eye-popping pinks, blues, yellows, greens, reds, purples, and other hues; pre-dawn dark colors lighten and dissipate as the day proceeds. People's skin tones are primarily nonrealistic, though one woman is shown with dark-brown skin. A wonderful image accompanying the charming turn of phrase "Today is a melody still to be written, / today is a tune no one's heard before" depicts a five-lined "staff" of electric wires with birds resembling musical notes perched upon them. Children will raise a loud cheer for this morning story. (Picture book. 3-6)
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