The Emperor Lays an Egg [Hardcover]

Brenda Z. Guiberson (Author), Joan Paley (Illustrator)

Book Description

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

Follow as a penguin grows from egg to adulthood in the coldest place on earth.

In the middle of winter, in the coldest place on earth, the mother emperor penguin lays her egg. The father rolls the egg onto his feet and keeps it warm. He doesn't eat or even move for two whole months. Finally the egg hatches.

The penguin chick is a tiny ball of gray fluff. The parents have to work hard to get enough food for their baby. The hungry father travels to the ocean to fish.
When the short summer comes to Antarctica, the chick grows a shiny coat of black and white feathers. Now it can take its first swim. And the parents fatten themselves up for winter, the long icy season when the emperor penguin lays its egg.

Stunning collages of handpainted paper and clear, evocative text capture the beauty and drama of the icy Antarctic world and one of its most fascinating and endearing inhabitants.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 1-3-Beginning with the laying of an egg, Guiberson describes the care given to a baby emperor penguin by both parents from the time it hatches until it is on its own. Much detail is given about the activities of the mother and father, particularly their unusual eating patterns and survival skills. In addition to the well-researched and well-organized text, most pages utilize onomatopoeia that is sure to be enjoyed by young readers who can mimic the sounds created by these phrases ("Whoosh-whish," "Shuffle, shuffle," "Gurgle, swish"). Educational information is presented informally and successfully blends with the storylike tone of the book. Created by cutting shapes from hand-painted paper, Paley's icy blue and purple collage illustrations serve as a wintry backdrop for the black-and-white emperor penguins. They make readers shiver as they see the fathers working hard to keep themselves and their small charges warm in the freezing temperatures. As the catchy title indicates, Guiberson's book is sure to delight readers. By describing the life cycle of the emperor penguin and the unusually harsh Antarctic climate, the author introduces young readers to the wonderful diversity of the Earth's habitats.

Cathie E. Bashaw, Somers Library, NY

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Ages 5-8. This large, handsome book presents the life cycle of the emperor penguin by following a family of the birds through a year beginning in May, when the mother lays one egg and passes it to the father penguin, who holds it on his feet under a flap of skin. Guiberson's vivid prose fleshes out the bare bones of the penguin's life cycle. She creates memorable images through straightforward presentation of the material to bring the story to life: for instance, "It is such a strong instinct that one emperor who doesn't have an egg shuffles around with a chunk of ice about the size of a softball"; or, "During the first twenty days, the father stands as still as a fire hydrant on the very same spot of ice." Paley's collages of painted and cut papers provide exceptionally beautiful scenes of the birds, from close-ups of the chick on his father's feet to scenes of the flock huddled for warmth or lined up to dive into the sea. The watery blues, greens, and purples of the setting show off the black, grays, and creamy yellows of the penguins in a surprisingly varied series of illustrations. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); 1st edition (December 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805062041
• ISBN-13: 978-0805062045
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 10.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,101,373 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

As a child, Brenda Z. Guiberson never thought about being an author or illustrator but wondered how she might become a jungle explorer. Much of her time was spent swimming in the Columbia River, watching birds and salmon, searching for arrowheads, and building things or taking them apart. She was curious about many things and had a lot of patience for watching.

In school, she loved science classes. But as she put herself through the University of Washington, it was easier to schedule evening English classes than afternoon science labs. She graduated with B.A. degrees in English and Fine Art.

Her son brought home stacks of books for reading. When he went off to elementary school, she volunteered in the school library and classroom. All these kids and books got her interested in writing for children. After taking exciting trips that involved a fifty-foot cactus, hungry alligators and sunset-colored spoonbills, she wanted to create books for children that would be like a field trip. Early books includeTurtle People, Cactus Hotel and Spoonbill Swamp. Like all the books that followed, they are filled with dramatic detail that came from doing extensive research.

Research, to her, is a great adventure. Finally she gets to be a jungle explorer. It includes talking to experts, looking through dusty collections and reading books. But her favorite part is getting out in the field. She has counted sea turtle eggs at 3 a.m. in Costa Rica, observed dancing flamingos on a salty island in the Bahamas, spent a night in a haunted lighthouse, kissed a dolphin on the snout, and watched graceful leeches swim in a boreal bog. All of this is part of an effort to create surprise, wonder and intrigue in her books. The other part of the effort involves revision, revision and more revision until the book flows with a sense of poetry blended with accurate information.

Whether the research leads to emperor penguins, flamingos, or mummies, she finds stories of wonder, adventure and survival everywhere. They are in the connections between plants and animals, in the links between past and present, in every hot, cold, salty and wet environment from the biggest to the smallest creature.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 4 1/2* Excellent Picture Book/Fact Book, November 4, 2002

By 

M. Allen Greenbaum (California) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Emperor Lays an Egg (Hardcover)

This is a wonderful fact-filled book that will appeal to toddlers and their older siblings as well. There are surprising facts: The father's instinct to balance an egg on his feet away from the snow is so strong, that "one emperor who doesn't have an egg shuffles around with a chunk of ice about the size of a softball." It's nice that both mother and father penguins get their due as hard-working parents. The mother must travel "waddle, waddle" ninety miles to the open sea (at less than one mile an hour) to get food after the egg is hatched. If lucky, she may find a "field of slick ice, and toboggan on her white belly to speed up the four-day trip. Swoosh! Swoosh!" (The author has a lot of fun with verbs!). The father stays with the egg for over two months in temperatures as low as -60 degrees F., and loses half of his body weight.

Some passages are longer and more complex than others, although in some way this widens the book's appeal. The pictures are boldly colorful and uncluttered (made from hand painted paper shaped formed into collages), my only complaint is that some there are too many pages of static penguins. True, this is the frozen North, but in other sections of the book there is more detail and action. Replete with interesting penguin facts and bright, friendly pictures, this is an excellent combination picture book/fact book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nature at Its Most Fascinating....., April 14, 2002

By 

Roz Levine - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Emperor Lays an Egg (Hardcover)

"In late May, as an icy winter wind blows across Antarctica, a mother emperor penguin lays an egg. Plop! To keep the egg from freezing, she catches it on her feet and covers it with a flap of skin..." So begins Brenda Guiberson's fascinating and engaging story of life and survival in the coldest place on Earth. Mother and Father penguin take turns eating, traveling on a harrowing journey ninety miles or more to an opening in the Arctic ice to feed. Their mate is left behind, standing still for months to care for the egg and eventually the fluffy little chick, in the worst of winter. Finally as the short summer begins, the baby chick leaves his parents' feet, grows black and white waterproof feathers, and learns to swim and feed on its own. Soon the winter will come, the ocean will freeze, and the emperor penguins will return to their mating grounds to begin the process again..... Ms Guiberson's easy to read and well researched text is chock full of detail, interesting facts, drama, and even appropriate sound effects, and is enhanced by Joan Paley's captivating artwork. Together word and art paint a marvelous and intriguing portrait of the life cycle of the emperor penguin. Perfect for youngsters 5 and older, The Emperor Lays An Egg is non-fiction at its very best, and a treasure of a book that definitely shouldn't be missed.

5.0 out of 5 stars Penguin fathers rule!, March 28, 2009

By 

Steven "BookDads.com" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Emperor Lays an Egg (Paperback)

The Emperor Lays an Egg
This book about the amazing story of Emperor Penguins - including how the father cares for the egg and young hatchling alone throughout the Antarctic winter - goes further than most other books on this topic for children. This book is appropriate for older rather than younger children, since it is a very long read. However, the length of the story allows for far more detail on this fascinating topic, including how penguin fathers work together to help each other keep the eggs warm.