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Children's Fiction Insects, Spiders, Etc.

Leap!

by (author) JonArno Lawson

illustrated by Josée Bisaillon

Publisher
Kids Can Press
Initial publish date
Sep 2017
Category
Insects, Spiders, etc., Reptiles & Amphibians, Marine Life
Recommended Age
3 to 7
Recommended Grade
p to 2
Recommended Reading age
3 to 7
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781771386784
    Publish Date
    Sep 2017
    List Price
    $18.99

Classroom Resources

Where to buy it

Description

“A flea asleep / in the deep green moss / nettled by midges / wakes up cross, / starts to fidget / and turn and toss.” Then his “lever-legs twitch” and he LEAPS into the path of a grasshopper. Which so startles the grasshopper that, she, in turn, LEAPS onto a bunny. And so it goes, dog, fish, bullfrog, horse and dog again, each leaping and upsetting the next. Until the dog finds herself in that same deep green moss. The flea sees his chance and leaps onto the dog. And, at last, they both fall asleep!

Award-winning JonArno Lawson's delightful circular story poem is a playful romp, much like a game of tag. With its rollicking rhythm and a rich array of action words --- besides leaping, the animals lunge, plunge, bound, gambol and lurch, for example --- this book will inspire and encourage children to move, making this an excellent introduction to the power of language. Award-winning Josée Bisaillon's beautiful mixed-media collage art provides visual motion and energy in tune with the rhyming narrative. This is a perfect book for a dynamic read-aloud sure to invite active listening. It's also just the right combination of engaging story and art that will encourage pre-readers to repeat the fun and silly story all on their own. Small children are fascinated by leaping creatures, making this an enjoyable exploration of animal behaviors and habitats from pond to field, with seven different leaping animals in all.

About the authors

Born in Hamilton, Ontario and raised nearby in Dundas, JonArno Lawson's most formative experiences as a child occurred in Florida which he visited for an extended stay at the age of eight. Happy to be missing almost an entire year of school, he filled his days at the beach digging holes and collecting shells and coconuts, travelling in glass-bottomed boats and touring nature parks that featured free-roaming monkeys and parrots. He wore a ship captain's hat at all times, and a green pouch in which he kept dozens of ticket stubs, a musket ball, brass souvenir coins that bore the faces of various American presidents, and other treasures which he hoards to this day. JonArno is a two-time winner of the Lion and the Unicorn Award for Excellence in North American Children's Poetry, for Black Stars in a White Night Sky in 2007 and again in 2009 for A Voweller's Bestiary. In 2011 his poetry collection Think Again was short-listed for the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Award. JonArno lives in Toronto with his wife Amy Freedman and his children Sophie, Ashey and Joseph, all of whom assist the author with phrases, topics and sometimes even complete lines for use in his poems.

JonArno Lawson's profile page

Jos&eacutee Bisaillon a illustr&eacute plus de trente-cinq livres pour enfants et cr&eacute&eacute de nombreuses illustrations pour des magazines et des journaux. Elle a &eacutet&eacute finaliste au Prix litt&eacuteraire du Gouverneur g&eacuten&eacuteral &agrave deux reprises et a remport&eacute le prestigieux Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award pour The Snow Knows. Il s’agit du quatri&egraveme ouvrage de Jos&eacutee avec Orca, apr&egraves My Head in the Clouds et Bedtime 123 &eacutecrit par Eric Walters, un succ&egraves de librairie. Elle vit en banlieue de Montr&eacuteal avec sa famille.

Josée Bisaillon's profile page

Awards

  • Winner, Best Books for Kids & Teens, Canadian Children's Book Centre
  • Winner, Best Picture Books of 2017, Kirkus Reviews

Editorial Reviews

... a book perfect for story time or bedtime.

CM Magazine

Expect children to show off their own joyful jumps after hearing this one.

Publishers Weekly

A playful story with lyrical text and charming illustrations ...

School Library Journal

A nicely tricky and satisfying read-aloud.—The Toronto Star

The Toronto Star

... not to be missed.

Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Bursting with energy and fun, Leap! will undoubtedly get the story-time crowd moving and shaking.

Quill & Quire, starred review

... an adventure in words and movement.

Leap!

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