Fireflies, Fireflies, Light My Way [Hardcover]

Jonathan London (Author), Linda Messier (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 3 and up

Fireflies, fireflies, light my way. Lead me to the place where the turtles play. Follow the fireflies to a magical nighttime place where turtles play, bullfrogs leap, and other animals swim, paddle, and dive. Inspired by a Native American lullaby, and illustrated with rich, luminous paintings, this celebration of the natural world is an irresistible invitation to youngsters, well-grounded in ecological fact ( "Publishers Weekly" ). Jonathan London is the author of many picture books, including his popular books about Froggy. He lives in California. This is Linda Messier

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A line from a Native American lullaby spurs this nocturnal jaunt through a bayou-like wilderness: "Fireflies, fireflies, light my way. Lead me to the place... where the turtles play." A relay ensues?turtles, bullfrogs, beavers, catfish, etc., are each asked to "lead me to the [next] place." Then, the story line suddenly whips back?like the surprise alligator's tail?and returns to the fireflies. London's (The Village of the Basket Weavers, reviewed below) verse is simple and predictable?not an imaginative poet's tour de force but an irresistible invitation to youngsters, well-grounded in ecological fact. The final refrain gathers all the animals into a delightful memory exercise for pre-readers. In her picture-book debut, Messier carries the text with luminous, densely saturated acrylics that comfort the eye and stimulate the imagination. Paintings and rhymes combine to entertain the audience into an appreciation of the interconnectedness of life. Ages 3-8.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2?The versatile author of the wonderfully amusing "Froggy" stories (Viking) and the poetic Eyes of Grey Wolf (Chronicle, 1993) has taken a phrase from a Native American lullaby and creatively expanded it to encompass the wild world of a swamp. The rhythmic text is similar to Bill Martin's Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (Holt, 1983). A child looks out over a swamp and says: "Fireflies, fireflies, light my way. Lead me to the place...where the turtles play." He asks each animal to lead him to the next, until at last he comes to a pond where they all play together. Set against rich, deep-blue backgrounds, the acrylic illustrations are stunning, luminously conceived double-page paintings of the creatures in their habitat?turtles, frogs, beavers, catfish, wood ducks, muskrats, raccoons, crawdads, otters, and alligators. Messier's jewel-toned, stylized art is reminiscent of Henri Rousseau's jungle paintings, placing equal emphasis on the surrounding flora as well as the fauna. In each picture, the artist not only hints at the next animal to be visited but also says farewell to the previous one, underlining the theme of the continuity and harmony of living things implied by the text. A beautifully executed book that will be an excellent story-time offering as well as a good independent read.?Judith Constantinides, East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Viking Juvenile (May 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670854425
• ISBN-13: 978-0670854424
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,337,904 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding! Our 15 month old loves to have it read to him., October 20, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Fireflies, Fireflies, Light My Way (Hardcover)

This book is wonderful. Our fifteen month old loves to have it read to him. The illustrations are wonderful. There are a number of different animals, and our baby loved to point them out. The pages are nice and large with lots, but not too much, to look at. The text is equally interesting and pleasant, and its rhyming nature makes it pleasant to read out loud

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful journey!, September 7, 2008

By 

A. Gable (Old Hickory, TN United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Fireflies, Fireflies, Light My Way (Picture Puffins) (Paperback)

This is a really lovely book. Both the text and the illustrations are beautiful and flow smoothly from one page to the next. My 25-month old loves it, and particularly enjoys pointing out the "hidden" animals on each page (the animal from the page preceeding and following a given page appear somewhere on the curent page). She also enjoys the rhythm of the language. When we've left the book with her at naptime, I can overhear her "reading" lines of the book to her teddybear as she flips the pages - it's wonderful!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book! Our Toddler Loves It!, January 12, 2008

By 

Jennifer Juday "Working Mom & Cook" (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fireflies, Fireflies, Light My Way (Picture Puffins) (Paperback)

FIREFLIES, FIREFLIES, LIGHT MY WAY is a truly exceptional picture book. Our 29-month-old has been asking to read this almost every for a month. Mom, dad, grandma and a babysitter have all been asked to read this, more than once!

Things we love about FIREFLIES, FIREFLIES, LIGHT MY WAY include:
- Beautiful PICTURES: brilliant colors, vivid images
- JOURNEY IN PICTURES as well as words: as each animal leads the boy to the next, you can glimpse one of the animal that came before, and the one that is coming next. Then in the final picture, you can see all of the animals. Our toddler loves searching out the detail in the pictures.
- RHYTHYM: Reads like a song or a poem
- LEARNING ANIMAL NAMES: a chance to learn names of animals and talk about what they do
- SWEET/GENTLE BOOK: although on one page we say "yikes" as we encounter alligators, it all feels like a delightful adventure, with nothing that disturbed our tender-hearted toddler

If you are choosing books in order to foster a sense of connection with the natural world, this book is an especially nice choice.