Cricket At The Manger [Hardcover]

Edith Hope Fine (Author), Winslow Pels (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

The story of the Nativity as told through the voice of one of the smallest creatures in the stable.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

PreS-Gr. 2. In this unusual version of the "talking animals at the nativity" story, the narrator is a grouchy cricket, awakened by people and animals trudging the streets of Bethlehem and crowding into the stable. Trapped by stomping feet and shifting hooves, Cricket screeches scolding sounds. A shepherd girl hears him and scoops him up, holding him aloft so he, too, can behold "the tiny child in a halo of light." When the baby's eyes meet his, the cricket knows he needs a song for the child. But when he tries to play his wings, he only squawks. Then he remembers "another way to play my wings" and creates a tune that makes the baby smile. The mixed-media illustrations, on textured, sand-colored paper, incorporate decorative details of religious art, and human characters are dressed in keeping with a traditional nativity story. Like the animals (and the cricket), the human characters have particularly distinctive eyes, but it's the cricket that really stands out: its body looks surprisingly mechanical, and its face incongruously human. Julie Cummins
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"A large, silver-gray cricket with human eyes is the first-person narrator of this unusual Nativity story told all in short sentences and phrases with lots of animal sound effects...Pels has created stunning illustrations in mixed medium, including sparkling jewels incorporated into her art...Large, decorative capital letters in brown and black set off each section of the text, further enhancing the volume's sophisticated design." --Kirkus Reviews

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Boyds Mills Press (September 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1563979934
• ISBN-13: 978-1563979934
• Product Dimensions: 12.2 x 9.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,035,376 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in Michigan, Edith Hope Fine is a teacher-turned-writer. Her books include user-friendly grammar, plus science, biographies, and picture books for kids. Her latest, Water, Weed, and Wait, about kids building a school garden, has been named a winner of Junior Master Gardeners' Growing Good Kids--Excellence in Children's Literature Award. Other titles are Under the Lemon Moon, Armando and the Blue Tarp School, Nitty-Gritty Grammar, More Nitty-Gritty Grammar, and CryptoMania! Teleporting into Greek and Latin with the CryptoKids.

Active in SCBWI (want to write for children? Google it!), Edith is a bibliophile and logophile. She lives near San Diego. Visit her at www.edithfine.com. And yes, she's working on teleporting.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rhythmic Holiday Celebration, October 10, 2005

By 

Rebecca Johnson "The Rebecca Review" (Washington State) - See all my reviews
(COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cricket At The Manger (Hardcover)

A grumpy little cricket just wants to sleep but there is no peace in the stable and the bright star is shinning in his eyes. "Such light. Such Noise. Is there no peace?" Just when he thinks he has found some quiet, Mary and Joseph arrive with a noisy donkey and then visitors arrive.

A shepherd girl scoops up the cricket and holds him high above the crowd so he can see the baby in the manger. Once he has a view he becomes interested in the angels and manger scene. He is so impressed that he decides to sing a song for the baby Jesus, only he can't quite manage more than a "Gar-Reech" because that has been his tune for so long.

Finally he manages to create a "Chirrr-rup Chirrr-rup" and feels he has
become part of the celebration.

Winslow Pels' illustrations fill each page with seasonal beauty in subtle shades of blues, reds and brown with sand-tone backgrounds. Edith Hope Fine's words dance and jump from the page in cricket sounds mingling with the tale of Jesus' birth.

A memorable story with a change in perspective near the end. It shows children that things are not always as they appear and miracles can even be found in seeming chaos.

~The Rebecca Review

5.0 out of 5 stars A unique rendition of the Nativity story, November 17, 2005

By 

Evelyn Pinkerton "Book lover" (St. Paul, MN) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Cricket At The Manger (Hardcover)

Fine's language is magical. She's included sensory details, universal feelings, humor, and strong characterization in the form of her cranky cricket in the stable that night. Her unique rendition of this age-old story is a "must" for holiday gifts for children; adults will love it, too. Winslow Pels's illustrations are stunning, right down to the donkey's eyelashes.