Dream Weaver [Hardcover]

Jonathan London (Author), Rocco Baviera (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 1998 | Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: K and up

Silently, a tiny yellow spider spins her fragile web. As a young boy stops to watch, she crawls along the delicate silken threads, sometimes hanging, sometimes spinning, sometimes staring back. Before the boy knows it, the spider’s world has become his own. . . .

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"So tiny, yet the closer you look, the bigger she gets" perfectly captures Dream Weaver, Jonathan London and illustrator Rocco Baviera's evocative, hypnotic picture book about a little boy watching a tiny yellow spider, in the up-close-and-personal vein of Verdi and Stellaluna. If you're quiet and you really listen, can you hear the spider's feet on the sparkling web? Baviera's ultramagnified, crayon-pencil illustrations make you feel like it might be possible. The spider's web shimmers with the slightest wind, and a "raindrop on a fallen leaf is a forest pool." Magically, this talented pair manages to make the little yellow spider's webbed world soothing bedtime fare--the young boy goes home from spider gazing to dream about weaving a web of his own to catch fallen stars and return them to the night sky. (Great read aloud, ages 4 to 8) --Karin Snelson

From Publishers Weekly

This woodland idyll spins the delicate tale of Yellow Spider, an orb weaver. Magnifying the spider's hidden world, London (The Eyes of Gray Wolf) writes his lyric prose in second person ("If you're quiet and listen, maybe you can hear its feet on the sparkling web"), while Bavier (A Boy Called Slow) spotlights the initial spider sighting, then cleverly introduces a boy viewer with whom readers can readily identify. The book thus becomes an invitation into the orb weaver's universe. Here, a snail is gargantuan (it fills an entire spread), and "a raindrop on a fallen leaf is a forest pool." The tranquil, Lilliputian perspective shifts when a hiker charges through, and Baviera shows the spider's web and environs in shambles (and the hiker's footprint in evidence). Undaunted, Yellow Spider "waits, then begins to weave." Bavier's full-bleed, electric, crayon pencil illustrations and telephoto focus heighten the miniature drama. With a palette of primary and secondary shades, Bavier's pictures fairly vibrate with intensity. An addendum, presented as a notebook entry, fills in the scientific details of Yellow Spider. Even reluctant scientists can appreciate this unflinching arachnid hero and may see the world a little differently after viewing it through his eyes. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books; 1st edition (March 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0152009442
• ISBN-13: 978-0152009441
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 9.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #536,743 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jonathan London is a poet and the author of a number of picture books including the Froggy Series. He lives with his wife and two sons in Graton, California. Frank Remkiewicz has illustrated posters, greeting cards, the Animal Crackers box and numerous books for children. He lives on the Gulf Coast of Florida with his wife and three daughters.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book for toddlers and young children!, July 31, 2001

By 

"blessedbythemoon" (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dream Weaver (Hardcover)

This book is about the life of a spider from the point of view of a young boy. The illustrations are vivid and the text is like a young boys handwriting to add to the overall "vibe". Our son is fascinated with bugs (including spiders) and this has become one of his favourites. Everytime we read it, he goes on the journey with the young boy as he watches the spider and follows it through weaving a web, having the web accidently hurt by a hiker, then helping the spider to find a safe place to weave another web. Included at the end of this book are a bunch of facts about spiders for older kids, or younger kids who are greatly interested.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Spectacular illustrations, touching story, May 10, 2008

By 

Backroads "Scatter-brained book fan" (Cache Valley, Utah) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Dream Weaver (Hardcover)

I think this is one of the most beautiful books I have ever come across! With colors mesmorizing enough to make you drunk Baviera pulls you right into the world of the spider, nothing held back in the incredible light. London writes like a dream himself, in lyrics that leave you breathless. It is absolutely enchanting!