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Children's Fiction Counting & Numbers

Ten Birds

illustrated by Cybèle Young

Publisher
Kids Can Press
Initial publish date
Mar 2011
Category
Counting & Numbers, General, Birds
Recommended Age
6 to 11
Recommended Grade
1 to 6
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781554539246
    Publish Date
    May 2012
    List Price
    $9.99
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781554535682
    Publish Date
    Mar 2011
    List Price
    $18.95

Classroom Resources

Where to buy it

Description

A clever counting book and fable unlike any other and winner of the 2011 Governor General's Award for Illustration.

Ten birds are trying to figure out how to get to the other side of the river. The bird they call “Brilliant” devises a pair of stilts. The bird they call “Highly Satisfactory” engineers a raft. One by one, nine resourceful birds make the crossing until a single bird is left behind - the one they call “Needs Improvement.” This bird's solution proves surprising - and absurdly simple.

More than a counting book, Ten Birds is a witty story that highlights ingenuity, common sense and the inadequacies of labels. Cybèle Young's intricate chiaroscuro pen-and-ink drawings depict a rich alternative world that both children and adults will marvel over.

About the author

Cybèle Young is an award-winning artist who exhibits her exquisite paper sculpture (Japanese paper printed with etched copperplates) internationally. She has illustrated several books for children, including Pa’s Harvest by Jan Andrews, which was nominated for the Governor General’s Award (Illustration) and Jack Pine by Christopher Patton. She has recently written and illustrated A Few Blocks, a Kirkus Best Children’s Book and winner of the Alcuin Award; Ten Birds, winner of the Governor General’s Award (Illustration); and A Few Bites, which received starred reviews in Kirkus and Publishers Weekly and was named an OLA Best Bet. Cybèle lives with her family in Toronto./p

Cybèle Young's profile page

Awards

  • Winner, Outstanding International Book, USBBY
  • Winner, Best Books for Kids & Teens, Starred Selection, Children's Book Centre
  • Winner, Best Children's Books of 2011, Kirkus Reviews
  • Winner, Governor General's Literary Award, Children's Illustration, Canada Council for the Arts

Librarian Reviews

Ten Birds

More than a clever counting book, this book highlights ingenuity, common sense and the inadequacies of labels. Discover how ten curious birds make their way to the other side of the river, creating fascinating structures as they do so. Cybèle Young’s intricate penand- ink drawings depict a rich alternative world that both children and adults will marvel over. Winner of the 2011 Governor General’s Literary Award for Illustration.

Source: The Canadian Children’s Book Centre. Best Books for Kids & Teens. Fall, 2012.

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