Over in the Meadow [Hardcover]

Jane Cabrera (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 3 and up

A variation of the counting rhyme that introduces a variety of animals and their activities.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In a lively variation on the familiar nursery rhyme, Cabrera (Eggday) offers an appealing and energetic landscape of boldly applied colors. Smudges reminiscent of finger painting dot the meadow, and each animal, outlined in thick black, stands out against its habitat. A pair of little goldfish with propeller fins swims in a blue-green sea, and seven froggies jump with Old Mother Frog in a "green grass heaven." The "little ratties four" gnaw all day by the old barn door, and 10 gray rabbits twitch in "a cozy wee den." To reinforce the counting lessons, Cabrera shows the entire barnyard scene and invites readers to find the animals once more ("Over in the meadow/ while the mothers are away,/ can you count the babies?/ They've all come out to play!"). A final page offers yet another refresher, as the animals cavort around their corresponding numeral. Learning to count--and even a bit about nature--is as easy as one, two, three in this merry meadow. Ages 4-8. (Mar.)

Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2-A fun, friendly variation on an old familiar counting rhyme. A big blue rabbit on the cover beckons readers over to the meadow. Bright colorful endpapers feature a patchwork of big squares with numbers and animals in them to identify. Then Old Mother Turtle and her little turtle one dig, Old Mother Fish and her little fishes two swim, and Old Mother Owl and her little owls three "Tu-whoo" until the rhyme is completed with Old Mother Rabbit and her little rabbits ten twitching. The last two full-page spreads provide opportunities for children to count all of the babies again. The pictures, dark heavy outline around the simple shapes that form the animals rendered in eye-popping colors, have the same appeal as Lucy Cousins's art. The acrylics with heavy obvious brush strokes have the look of finger painting. The movement and energy conveyed in the illustrations enhance the rhyme, and listeners may be inspired to act out the animal actions or chime in on the rhyme. The music is not included. Great fun for storytimes.-Jean Gaffney, Dayton and Montgomery County Public Library, OH

Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Holiday House (March 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823414906
• ISBN-13: 978-0823414901
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 8.7 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,093,178 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The traditional song in bright colors, April 6, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Over in the Meadow (Hardcover)

"Over in the Meadow" is based on the song by the same title, so it is a fun read as well as a fun sing. But even it you don't know the song, the words are simple and funny. Children can follow along easily with the repeated pattern of words. The book revolves around 10 different animal moms and their babies. The animals' homes and their actions are quite funny for children, especially if they pretend to be the animal babies. While the story is fun to read and sing, the best feature of this book is the illustrations. The bright colors immediately attracted my youngest child to the book. Older children have enjoyed the pictures immensely, looking to see what they can identify as well as searching for new things to learn about. "Over in the Meadow" is a great book for preschool through early elementary school children. And out of a personal children's library of several hundred books, this is one of a very few that I have purchased to give to family and friends.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining and educational, May 9, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Over in the Meadow (Hardcover)

This book is used in my sons music class. It is fun to sing and teaches counting along the way. All of the children sit to hear this book read and love identifying the animals and counting along. I'm buying it today for home too.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gorgeous illustrations and wonderful story, July 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Over in the Meadow (Hardcover)

This is one of the few books that both my two year old and I really enjoy together. The illustrations are so colorful and lively and the text is a fun, rhythmic song that is great for kids to count and act out. This is one of the few books that I will use to give as a gift.