The Cuckoo's Haiku: and Other Birding Poems (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Stan Fellows (Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A joyful primer on the pleasures of bird-watching merges haiku, notes for identifying species, and exquisite watercolor illustrations.

In spare and graceful words, poet and birder Michael J. Rosen captures
the forecasting call of the mysterious cuckoo as well as essential characteristics of more than twenty commonly seen North American birds. This artfully compiled fi eld notebook — enriched by the evocative artwork of watercolorist Stan Fellows — captures the excitement of recognizing a bird, whether a darting kingfi sher, a wandering wild turkey, or a chirpy house sparrow.

About the Author

Michael J. Rosen has written and edited more than sixty books for children and adults, including A DRIVE IN THE COUNTRY and DON'T SHOOT! CHASE R.'S TOP TEN REASONS NOT TO MOVE TO THE COUNTRY. He lives on one hundred forested acres in central Ohio.

Stan Fellows has illustrated several books for children, including JOHN MUIR: AMERICA'S FIRST ENVIRONMENTALIST by Kathryn Lasky. He lives in Iowa City.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (March 10, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763630497
• ISBN-13: 978-0763630492
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #184,673 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #29 in	Books > Literature & Fiction > Poetry > Japanese & Haiku
  #65 in	Books > Children's Books > Animals > Birds > Nonfiction

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Poems and Gorgeous Illustrations, April 29, 2009

By	tvtv3 "tvtv3" (Sorento, IL United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

I occasionally like watching birds out a kitchen window or when sitting quietly beneath a tree. I'm not a birder, but after looking through and reading THE CUCKOO'S HAIKU AND OTHER BIRDING POEMS, I found myself wanting to purchase a pair of binoculars and waking up early in the morning to go look for some pretty birds. The book examines twenty-four different birds by dividing the birds into seasons. Each bird is featured in brilliant watercolors on its own page with a haiku that reveals something about the bird. Both the haikus and illustrations are beautiful. Besides the haiku, there are a few notes about the bird on each page. The book concludes with several pages where the author gives a few more sentences to each bird explaining how the haiku for that bird developed and why certain words were used. The birds in the book are the Eastern Bluebird, Canada Goose, American Goldfinch, Northern Cardinal, American Crow, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Mourning Dove, Chimney Swift, Belted Kingfisher, Barred Owl, Great Blue Heron, Pleated Woodpecker, Northern Mockingbird, Common Grackle, Cedar Waxwing, White-breasted Nuthatch, European Starling, American Robin, Black-billed Cuckoo, Dark-eyed Junco, Wild Turkey, Blue Jay, House Sparrow, and the Purple Finch.

THE CUCKOO'S HAIKU is marketed as a children's book and though children can enjoy the book, the book also makes an excellent gift for adults who like to go birding. I could easily see the book being used as a field book by a grandparent as they go birding with their grandchildren.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review from www.firrkids.com, April 14, 2009

By	www.firrkids.com - See all my reviews

This is a seriously gorgeous book. Downright stunning, actually. A poetry volume cleverly disguised as a field guide that offers beautifully written haiku on twenty-four birds. As if the prose weren't enough, the pages are also filled with most wondrous watercolors by Stan Fellows.

The selections are arranged by season, beginning with the Eastern Bluebird of Spring and closing with the Purple Finch of Winter. Brilliant colors appear in the plumage of Golden Finches, Cardinals and Blue Jays. Even the American Robin, which is so common in our own backyard, is spectacular here with her puffed orange breast and white speckled throat. She sings "cheerily, cheer up, cheer up, cheerily, cheer up!" Every detail of the book is carefully arranged, right down to the perfectly chosen fonts.

Author Michael J. Rosen says "Now I live on a 100-acre farm in the foothills of the Appalachians. Writing about wildlife is really writing about my own life." He offers us a delightful peek at what he is privy to on a daily basis. Here there are feeders heavy with Purple Finches, Morning Doves building their nests and Belted Kingfishers catching fresh fish for dinner. Pileated Woodpeckers drum in the forest while the sky turns black with by the wings of a thousand Starlings.

It's lovely to find a book such as this - a children's book that is just as much a joy for adults as well. Readers of any age will take so much pleasure in this volume. If readers are not already fascinated by birds, this is an amazing introduction to the how amazing bird watching can be. Be prepared to be hooked, as this is one book far too beautiful to be relegated to the bookshelf.

5.0 out of 5 stars beautiful book!!, November 4, 2009

By	Wei Zhou "illustrator" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

if you like watercolor, birds, landscape, it is a super book you must have! nice price and high quality.