From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 3—This unusual introduction to animal migration starts on a New England farm, which is home to a monarch butterfly, a barn swallow, and an American eel. During the summer, the creatures prepare for the long journey ahead. In fall, they travel more than a thousand miles to complete the next stage of their lives. Eventually, their offspring return to the same farm to recommence the cycle. The striking watercolor illustrations effectively introduce the animals in their habitats. Often the page layout, divided into three horizontal bands, reminds viewers of the parallel existence of bird, butterfly, and eel. The double-page map showing their respective journeys emphasizes the vast distances they migrate. Two pages of author notes supply fascinating information that older readers might use to expand their own knowledge or answer questions of curious listeners. A well-designed and useful resource to pique curiosity about an amazing aspect of the lives of many animals.—
Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
On a New England farm in the summer, a monarch butterfly flits about, laying her eggs on milkweed plants in the meadow, while an eel swims and eats in the pond and a swallow tends her young in the rafters of the barn. Autumn arrives, and each begins a journey to a warmer place: Bird flies to Argentina, Butterfly flies to Mexico, and Eel swims down a creek and across the Atlantic to the Sargasso Sea. When spring comes to the farm, Bird, Butterfly, and Eel (or, as the appended notes clarify, their descendants) return. Apart from a couple of incongruous bits of anthropomorphism, the text tells what is happening in a concise, straightforward manner. Double-page paintings illustrate the animals and their habitats in broad, horizontal scenes. One particularly nice panel clearly depicts eight stages as a caterpillar changes into a butterfly. The book concludes with two pages of information on the three species. A satisfying addition to classroom units on migration. Grades K-3. --Carolyn Phelan
