Seabird [Paperback]

Holling C. Holling (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

The history of America at sea is presented through the travels of Seabird, a carved ivory gull.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The subject takes the reader over the globe and provides room for imagination to aid history in vitalizing the period. The beauty of the illustrations gives the book distinction." Horn Book

"The subject takes the reader over the globe and provides room for imagination to aid history in vitalizing the period. The beauty of the illustrations gives the book distinction." Horn Book Guide

About the Author

Born in Jackson County, Michigan, in 1900, Holling Clancy Holling graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 1923. He then worked in a taxidermy department of the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago and spent time working in anthropology under Dr. Ralph Linton. During this period, he married Lucille Webster and within a year of their marriage accepted a position as art instructor on the first University World Cruise, sponsored by New York University. For many years, Holling C. Holling dedicated much of his time and interest to making books for children. Much of the material he used was known to him first hand, and his wife, Lucille, worked with him on many of the illustrations.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Sandpiper (April 26, 1978)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395266815
• ISBN-13: 978-0395266816
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.8 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #66,166 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in Jackson County, Michigan, in 1900, Holling Clancy Holling graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 1923. He then worked in a taxidermy department of the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago and spent time working in anthropology under Dr. Ralph Linton. During this period, he married Lucille Webster and within a year of their marriage accepted a position as art instructor on the first University World Cruise, sponsored by New York University. For many years, Holling C. Holling dedicated much of his time and interest to making books for children. Much of the material he used was known to him first hand, and his wife, Lucille, worked with him on many of the illustrations.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seabird a journey through time, September 29, 2000

By 

Nick Triggs (Katoomba Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seabird (Paperback)

I first read this book about thirty years ago, and would regularly re-visit it and other titles by this author, until I grew out of so called picture books. That I can still recall the pictures from Seabird, and the images that the cast in my mind testify to the quality of the writing. The journey from coastal whaling off Nantucket, to Greenland, the Pacific and the Yankee clippers that have forged their way into Legend, ending with one of the protaganists and his grandchild on a steamship in the 1920s will never leave me. Books like this should never die or be forgotten. You owe it to your children to make sure they read it.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Age of Discovery, August 7, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Seabird (Hardcover)

From its inception in the 1940's, Seabird has offered children of all ages a rich blend of New World nautical history, from tall-masted ships to steamships, all woven into an adventure of global exploration by sea. Highly recommended.

To this day Seabird evokes sights and sounds of whaling days and early coal-powered ships. I smell the greased hemp lines and the rendered blubber, the sulphurous fumes of steamers, kelp, and the sea itself.

The early youth, perhaps reading alone or read to, becomes a lean young sailor, develops character, and passes into old age through four generations -- a most remarkable transition when one knows so little of aging or history. Holling was a master author, first of Paddle to the Sea, later of more land-based novels, each rich in full-page color images.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another twaddle free classic, November 17, 2006

By 

K. Rose (California) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Seabird (Paperback)

Any of Holling C. Holling books are worthy of a space on your personal library shelf. "Seabird" is a wonderful story celebrating the art of sailing as passed down generation by generation while exploring topics of geography, sea life, geology, and history. It engages the mind and investigates new interests. The illustrations are impressive and intriguing.