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Summer Birds: The Butterflies of Maria Merian

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Julie Paschkis

Margarita Engle

Summer Birds: The Butterflies of Maria Merian Hardcover – Picture Book, April 27, 2010

by Margarita Engle (Author), Julie Paschkis (Illustrator)

4.6 123 ratings

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In the Middle Ages, people believed that insects were evil, born from mud in a process called spontaneous generation. Maria Merian was only a child, but she disagreed. She watched carefully as caterpillars spun themselves cocoons, which opened to reveal summer birds, or butterflies and moths. Maria studied the whole life cycle of the summer birds, and documented what she learned in vibrant paintings.

This is the story of one young girl who took the time to observe and learn, and in so doing disproved a theory that went all the way back to ancient Greece.

Reading age

5 - 8 years
Print length

32 pages
Language

English
Grade level

Kindergarten - 3
Dimensions

8.4 x 0.4 x 10.3 inches
Publisher

Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
Publication date

April 27, 2010
ISBN-10

0805089373
ISBN-13

978-0805089370
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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-4 In the Middle Ages, insects were thought to be evil, and to generate spontaneously in the mud. Born in the 1600s, 13-year-old Maria Merian had a passion for butterflies (and other insects), and she describes her study of their habits and their life cycle in this first-person narrative. Her activities are suspect and punishable. Fortunately, her artistic family provides her the training and time to study, collect, and paint insects and their habitats. Maria alludes to her adult life as she dreams of a future publishing a book and traveling the world. The flowing vines, jewel tones, and imaginary creatures in the illustrations all evoke artwork from the time. Occasional black backgrounds provide backdrops for her imagination. As an adult, Merian's groundbreaking work caught Carl Linnaeus's attention, and copies of her published prints are now housed in art museums around the world. A historical note shares some of the context of her life. Although a little slight on content, this fascinating glimpse of a woman far head of her time and unknown to most young readers offers a fresh perspective on the study of insects. Carol S. Surges, McKinley Elementary School, Wauwatosa, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Engle, who has set many of her award-winning titles in Cuba, turns her attention to seventeenth-century Germany in this luminous picture-book biography of a girl who disproved centuries of scientific belief through simple observation. Born in Frankfurt in 1647, Maria Sibylla Merian disagreed with the conventional wisdom, dating back to the Greeks, that “summer birds,” or butterflies, were “beasts of the devil” that sprang alive from the mud through spontaneous generation. Engle writes in the voice of Maria as a young teen, who carefully watches the slow transformation of caterpillars to winged adults, painting everything that she sees, always in secret: “Neighbors would accuse me of witchcraft if they knew.” In expertly pared-down language, the poetic lines deftly fold in basic science concepts about life cycles, along with biographical details that are further developed in an appended historical note. Paschkis’ brilliantly colored and patterned paintings are an exuberant counterpoint to the minimal words. Swirling with vibrantly colored creatures, the spreads include whimsical references to popular superstitions of the time: in one wild, subterranean image, for example, a dragonlike beast lurks in the mud and spews butterflies from its jaws. Joyous and inspiring, this beautiful introduction to a passionate young scientist who defied grown-ups and changed history will spark children’s own fascination with the natural world and its everyday dramas. Grades K-3. --Gillian Engberg

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); First Edition (April 27, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 32 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0805089373
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0805089370
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 5 - 8 years
Grade level ‏ : ‎ Kindergarten - 3
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.2 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.4 x 0.4 x 10.3 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #130,903 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #68 in Children's Art Biographies (Books)
- #311 in Children's Bug & Spider Books (Books)
- #374 in Children's Zoology Books (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.6 123 ratings

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Julie Paschkis
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Julie Paschkis is a painter, textile designer, and award winning illustrator and author of books for children.
Several third party sellers are currently selling objects here at Amazon with my art on them: phone covers, skateboards, socks and lunch bags. They didn’t ask my permission, nor are they paying me. Please don’t buy these products. Please do my books! Thank you.
Her latest book, which she wrote and illustrated is MAGIC SPELL. Please look for FLUTTER AND HUM and APPLE CAKE - A LOVE STORY.
PABLO NERUDA:POET OF THE PEOPLE by Monica Brown is an Americas Award Winner and an Orbis Pictus Honor book. NIGHT GARDEN: POEMS FROM THE WORLD OF DREAMS by Janet Wong was a 2000 New York Times Best Illustrated Book. YELLOW ELEPHANT by Julie Larios received a 2006 Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Award Book. Many of her books have been named to Best Books of the Year list including GLASS SLIPPER, GOLD SANDAL by Paul Fleischman, which a NY Times Notable Book, a BookSense Pick, a New York Public Library 100 Best Book, and a Kirkus Best Book for 2007.
You can see her love of pattern and folk art in her work. All of her work tells stories. The many children's books she has illustrated include folk tales, poetry and biography.
She blogs with 3 other children's book creators at Books Around The Table at wordpress.
See more on the author's page
Margarita Engle
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Margarita Engle is the Cuban-American winner of the first Newbery Honor ever awarded to a Latino. Her award winning young adult novels in verse include The Surrender Tree, The Poet Slave of Cuba, and The Lightning Dreamer, winner of the PEN USA Award.
Engle's most recent books are Orangutanka, Drum Dream Girl, The Sky Painter, and Enchanted Air. All of these books are to be released in 2015. For news and updates, visit http://margaritaengle.com/
She lives in central California, where she enjoys helping her husband with his volunteer work for wilderness search and rescue dog training programs.
See more on the author's page

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5

123 global ratings

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Mary Lou Henneman

CSLA Rodda Award Nomination

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 1, 2011

Verified Purchase

SUMMER BIRDS was nominated for the 2011 Rodda Book Award sponsored by the Church and Synagogue Library Association (CSLA), an international organization serving congregational libraries of all faiths. CSLA's Rodda Award is named for Dorothy Rodda Sargent, a lifetime member and one of the founders of the organization. This award recognizes a book which exhibits excellence in writing and has contributed significantly to congregational libraries through promotion of spiritual growth. The award is given to books for adults, young adults, and children on a three-year-rotational basis. The 2011 Rodda Award focuses on books for children and this year's award will be presented at the CSLA annual conference to be held at the Hilton Embassy Row Hotel in Washington,D.C., July 19-22. To learn more about CSLA and the Rodda Award go to [...].

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

E.A.P.

Beautiful artwork, a story that should be told

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 10, 2019

Verified Purchase

The artwork in this story is beautiful, imaginative, and probably inspired by Maria Merian herself. My children (4-7) enjoy this story, ask for it repeatedly, linger on the pages when reading themselves, and can retell the story of Maria Merian's life. This also coincides well with the insect life cycle, a commonly featured part of curricula from pre-school through 2nd grade and can be a nice supplement to academic discussions.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Ellen G. Olinger

Art, History, and Science in one beautiful book

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 3, 2010

Verified Purchase

This is an outstanding book in every way. "The true story of a girl who broke new ground as a scientist and an artist!"

Margarita Engle's writing and the pictures by Julie Paschkis combine so well to tell the story of Maria Merian, who I learned was born in Germany (1647).

I studied and worked in education for 20 years and had the privilege of teaching students from the early childhood level to grandparents. In my opinion, this book will appeal to all. As I watch butterflies from now on, I will think of "Summer Birds." My mother was German, so I also felt a personal connection. Wonderful book!

11 people found this helpful

Helpful

Patricia Becker

Story Line Missing Something

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 30, 2022

Verified Purchase

The illustrations were beautiful, but the story line did not quite hang together. The book did not adequately introduce Maria Merian to those who have never heard of her before. It stated a couple of different times that insects were considered evil, but did not say by whom, and in what way. Were they thought to be poisonous? Harmful to crops? Demonic? Agents of evil pagan gods? I would not recommend this book to anyone for these reasons.

Helpful

J. Backus

I fell in love with it and shared it with friends

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 27, 2015

Verified Purchase

I am sending this to our Granddaughters in July. I fell in love with it and shared it with friends. The illustrations are just beautiful and the story of a brave young girl who did her research and discovered how the butterflies perpetuate is a wonderful example for young girls. Our Granddaughters are 5 and 8. One wants to be scientist so I am sure she will identify with the story. I loved the name Summer Birds for butterflies. I also learned interesting facts from this book.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

MarieLouise Colicchio

Beautiful illustrations.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 4, 2021

Verified Purchase

Gift to a special little girl.

Helpful

Michelle Venable

Great book for art teachers

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 21, 2018

Verified Purchase

I love this book and it’s message. It was very useful for an art lesson about nature drawing. This book is great to teach children to be persistent. I used it to talk about the Studio Habits of Mind because it demonstrates how artists use those habits.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

L. Amick

Snookered

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 31, 2014

Verified Purchase

Frankly, I bought this book for my granddaughter because of the illustrator and her clever use of folkloric symbolism in her art work. The story about a young girl who later became a biologist was a positive message to our current "princess" culture. I read the book to my granddaughter when it arrived. I found the story to be mediocre. No strong message for feminine power nor for challenging common societal thinking of the time. The story can't decide whether to be about the scientist or the insects and reptiles that are mentioned.
The art work is also not up to snuff. There are a couple of really good compositions and the rest is filler.
All in all, I feel I was somewhat snookered by this book promotion, and I doubt my granddaughter will seek out this book for the story nor the illustrations in her day to day book reading.

7 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Rosie

Good book, great story and pictures

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 21, 2016

Verified Purchase

Good book, great story and pictures, but some of the wording is a bit confusing for a little one - the author switches between "summer birds" and "butterflies" a lot which my son finds confusing. But then he is 3, maybe it's for an older audience. He still finds the pictures enchanting.

One person found this helpful

Superwoman

A classic one for every girl no matter what their aspirations such an inspirational story and beautiful illustrations

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 1, 2014

Verified Purchase

Such beautiful illustrations, a lovely inspirational story, one to be read out loud I think, its a gorgeous purchase and I can see it becoming a family heirloom passed from Mother to daughter/son

2 people found this helpful

See all reviews

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