When the Fireflies Come [Hardcover]

Jonathan London (Author), Terry Widener (Author)

Book Description

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

This delicious depiction of the quintessential summer night opens with screen doors slamming, burgers sizzling on the grill, ice cream dripping, bare feet slapping on blacktop, and boys and girls playing baseball. Shadows lengthen, the first twinkling stars appear, and then . . . the fireflies come! The kids scramble to capture the blinking bugs in jars, only to set them free when it's time to go home. Crickets sing them to sleep, and still they play ball . . . in their dreams. Terry Widener's exuberant figures and cool summer-evening palette brilliantly evoke the joy and sensations in Jonathan London's lyrical text.

Illustrated by Terry Widener.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 2-After a full afternoon of barbecues and badminton, children ignore the bright skies fading to twilight, playing baseball and clowning with friends until well after dark. The full-color art playfully supports a sense-ridden text-smells of torn grass as children tickle their skin with it, sights of twinkling firefly light as the insects buzz inside clear quart jars, and the sounds of crickets. Widener's full-color illustrations and London's text blend smoothly and lazily like a summer day turning into night, and the language easily switches gears from heart pumping with a beat ("We crouch and stalk and pounce") to reflective and dreamy ("Our jars are lanterns that blink. Off and on. On and off. We're sending signals to the stars and the moon"). This magical summer of fun is a slice of comforting middle-class Americana sure to evoke appreciative smiles.
Nancy Call, Santa Cruz Public Libraries, Aptos, CA
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Jonathan London is the author of many children's books, including another beautiful ode to summer, Sun Dance, Water Dance, illustrated by Greg Couch.

Terry Widener has illustrated several picture books, including The Babe & I and Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man, both by David A. Adler.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Juvenile; 1 edition (May 26, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525454047
• ISBN-13: 978-0525454045
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 8.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,637,119 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book about summer..., November 11, 2006

By 

Melissa Hussain (Granada Hills, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: When the Fireflies Come (Hardcover)

This book does a wonderful job of capturing the feeling of summer. The writing and illustrations are wonderful and it really takes you back to those great days of summer. I highly recommend it.