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A Place to Start a Family: Poems About Creatures That Build Kindle Edition

by David L. Harrison (Author), Giles Laroche (Illustrator) Format: Kindle Edition
4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars 24 ratings
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A poetry collection introducing animal architects that build remarkable structures in order to attract a mate and have babies.

Many animals build something--a nest, tunnel, or web--in order to pair up, lay eggs, give birth, and otherwise perpetuate their species. Organized based on where creatures live--underground, in the water, on land, or in the air--twelve poems bring fish, insects, reptiles, mammals, and birds to life. Back matter includes more information about each animal.

"A fine synthesis of poetry and science" — Kirkus Reviews

"An inviting introduction to a dozen industrious creatures" — Publishers Weekly
"A natural for classroom use, with eye-catching art that will lure little ones in" — Booklist


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Previous page
  1. Reading age
    5 - 9 years
  2. Print length
    32 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Grade level
    Kindergarten - 4
  5. Publisher
    Charlesbridge
  6. Publication date
    January 16, 2018
  7. Page Flip
    Not Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Not Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Not Enabled
  10. Sticky notes
    Not Enabled
  11. ISBN-13
    978-1580897488
  12. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

K-Gr 4—Narrative poems describe how 13 creatures construct homes for their families, building intricate and oftentimes beautiful creations from materials such as thread, glue, and paper. An introduction in prose explains how animals, including people, build before the book delves into verse. Each subsequent section includes three poems about living things who build in that particular environment: builders underground, on land, in water, and in the air. A bonus poem about a different kind of builder, sun coral, completes the collection. The use of alliteration, rhyme, and onomatopoeia adds an inquisitive nature to the poems as it presents information regarding each animal's habitat. The 3-D cut-paper collage illustrations exquisitely render insight into the architecture and daily life of each being. In "European Paper Wasp," the microscopic world of this minute insect is vibrantly realized. Eggs glow golden within their cells and "Winged warriors/warn with spear" in brilliant yellows and blacks. Harrison details how their nest is formed with paper and Laroche's stunning technique of layering hand-painted papers renders this image to startling effect. As with their previous work on Now You See Them, Now You Don't: Poems About Creatures That Hide, this is an exceptional example of collaboration. Some other animals included in this collection are star-nosed mole, king cobra, and beaver. Notes at the end provide Latin names of all creatures, further information, and titles to learn more. VERDICT This is a great selection for science and poetry enthusiasts.—Rachel Zuffa, Racine Public Library, WI

Review

Twelve poems present a variety of animal homes and mate-attracting constructions. Arachnids (trapdoor spider, garden spider), birds (red ovenbird, white stork), fish (stickleback, pufferfish), insects (termite, paper wasp), mammals (star-nosed mole, beaver, prairie dog), and a reptile (the king cobra) are each introduced by way of a double-page spread and a simple two-to-eight stanza poem. In four sections—building underground, on land, in the water, and in the air—animals are shown building webs, nests, food traps, and tunneled homes, along with their mates, eggs, or young. Laroche's layered, cut-paper illustrations are clear and intriguingly detailed, handsomely supporting the informational content of each poem. Rich colors and varied textures allow this 3-D original artwork to work well in two dimensions. Harrison's poems employ varied voices, rhythms, and formats; all are memorable and easy to understand. Some are humorous: a busy stickleback male appeals to a potential mother of his family: "The best nest / that's ever been! / Please, / Ms. Stickleback, / swim in." Backmatter gives each animal an explanatory paragraph and, for several, a suggestion of books for further exploration. The author's and illustrator's own sources are not indicated. A bonus poem and terrific illustration on the last page describe "A different kind of builder," sun coral, which creates coral reefs by congregating together. A fine synthesis of poetry and science.
— Kirkus Reviews

In 12 playful rhyming poems, Harrison explores the architectural feats of animals that build homes for themselves on land, in the water, and up in buildings and trees. A white-spotted pufferfish attempts to impress a potential mate (“Tiny sculptor/ thinks grand,/ builds a nest/ out of sand/ forty times/ his own size/ trying to/ attract a prize”), while a red ovenbird spends months creating a domelike dwelling (“How do you know/ to weave/ like that?/ With grass and hair/ and leaves/ like that?”). Laroche’s cut-paper illustrations, created with handpainted papers, lend a real sense of depth and dimension to the creatures’ layered homes of grass, leaves, and other organic material; closing notes discuss each animal in greater detail, and a bonus poem looks at the growth of coral reefs. An inviting introduction to a dozen industrious creatures.
— Publishers Weekly

Lively rhymes and arresting cut-paper collage illustrations are an appealing combination in this introduction to a variety of animals that build homes. The animals are grouped by where they build homes; for example, paper wasps and storks build homes “in air,” while sticklebacks and puffer fish build homes underwater. The poems vary nicely in structure, and while some are more successful than others, they are, overall, approachable and gently informative. Complementing the text, Laroche’s superb collage illustrations offer additional views of the homes described in the poems and are rich with detail, from the meticulous scales on the king cobra to the multicolored, individually cut branches and logs making up the beaver’s den. A cutaway section of a termite’s nest, revealing the cast network of tunnels within, is particularly engrossing. For readers looking for eve more information, the back matter provides additional commentary about each creature and the way it builds its home. A natural for classroom use, with eye-catching art that will lure little ones in.
—Booklist

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B076ZVYZVF
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Charlesbridge (January 16, 2018)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 16, 2018
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 16442 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Not enabled
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 32 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars 24 ratings

About the authors

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  1. Giles Laroche

    Giles Laroche

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    LOST CITIES, the latest book written and illustrated by Giles and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt releases soon. Readers in grades 3-6 can imagine what it was like to live 500, 1000, or 3000 years ago in such places as Babylon, Machu Picchu, Mesa Verde and many other wondrous cities. What contributions did these cities make to our world, why they were lost, and how they were found? are questions answered in the text. Each accompanying double page cut paper relief illustration shows each city in its heyday. Booklist has called it "a striking guide to lost cities".

    Please see accompanying video to see how Giles' cut paper illustrations are created.

    When not writing his own children's picture books Giles enjoys partnering with writers and poets

    and creating cut-paper illustrations inspired by their words. He's worked with David Harrison on NOW YOU SEE THEM, NOW YOU DON'T: POEMS ABOUT ANIMALS THAT HIDE, A PLACE TO START A FAMILY: POEMS ABOUT CREATURES THAT BUILD, with Philemon Sturges on BRIDGES ARE TO CROSS, SACRED PLACES, and DOWN TO THE SEA IN SHIPS and April Jones Prince on WHAT DO WHEELS DO ALL DAY?

    Find out more about about Giles and see more of his art on Facebook or on his website; www.gileslaroche.com "Art for kids and beyond" or at Charlesbridge Publishing's website; www.charlesbridgepublishing.com.

    See more on the author's page
  2. David L. Harrison

    David L. Harrison

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    David L. Harrison has published ninety-three books including poetry, fiction, and nonfiction for young readers and educational books for teachers. He is poet laureate of Drury University and David Harrison Elementary School is named for him. His work has been anthologized in more than 185 books, translated into twelve languages, sandblasted into a library sidewalk, painted on a bookmobile, and presented on television, radio, podcast, and video stream. David has given keynote talks, college commencement addresses, and been featured at hundreds of conferences, workshops, literature festivals, and schools across America. He holds science degrees from Drury and Emory universities. Two universities have presented him with honorary doctorates of letters. Among dozens of awards, David’s poetry collection, Pirates, represented Missouri at the 2013 National Book Fair in Washington, D.C. The Society of Midland Authors honored his most recent book of poetry, Now You See Them, Now You Don’t, with its Children’s Nonfiction Literary Award for books published in 2016. David lives with his wife, Sandy, in Springfield, Missouri. See more at http://davidlharrison.com . His blog is http://davidlharrison.wordpress.com .

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars
4.9 out of 5
24 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

LindaB
5.0 out of 5 stars Animals' Creativity - just like the author's and illustrator's - Amazing!
Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2018
Verified Purchase
It's almost Valentine's Day, so speaking of love, according to Pliny the Elder, "Home is where the heart is." Unless you're a black-tailed prairie dog, then it's underground. Or if you're a king cobra, it's in a pile of leaves. White storks find their hearts, uh, homes, on chimney tops. These animal homes and others can be found celebrated poetically in David L. Harrison's new poetry collection, A Place To Start A Family: Poems About Creatures Who Build, illustrated by Giles Laroche.
The diversity of poems that fill the pages parallel the diversity of animals written about, poems that will begin a journey of wonder about other animals' homes and construction prowess. There are four sections—building underground, on land, in the water, and in the air and a bonus poem at the end. Why? Because it is so unique a "home builder" that it doesn't fit in the earlier sections!
I recognized some of these animals, like the star-nosed mole that David describes in part: "I keep my babies/ safe and dry,/ but otherwise/ I don't deny--/I love it wet/and full of bugs, worms, beetles,/ grubs, and slugs." And I know of the yellow garden spiders whose baby spiderlings hatch "the size of dust/sail away on gentle gust/to decorate another yard."
The incredible protection created by these creatures amazes with what appears to be instinct, that need to ensure the endurance of its species. David's poetic words uniquely respect each. That three-spined stickleback fish weaves its home underwater: "See the tunnel?/See the mound?/See I made it/nice and round?. . ."The best nest/that's ever been!/Please,/Ms. Stickleback, swim in." David's poems from "in the air" include the red ovenbird and questions. I imagine reading this poem aloud with the repeating verses becoming increasingly louder because of the awe in viewing the nest. Here are a couple of verses: "How do you know/to weave/like that? and Make it round/with twigs/like that?" I also imagine students reading and hearing this and understanding that they too might try a poem with questions.
David and Giles Laroche collaborated and created an earlier book, Now You See Them, Now you Don't: Poems About Creatures That Hide. Giles again has used cut paper collages on what the book says is "a series of hand-painted papers." His art enhances the poems with depth and clarity, so much that I wanted to reach out and lift some off the page.
There is added information at the back of the book for each animal plus "Learn More" sections, too. It's a terrific non-fiction poetry collection that will inspire everyone, children to adults, to discover more about these interesting creatures, and perhaps look for others to add to the collection David and Giles created.
2 people found this helpful
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Bibi
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful naturalist poetry and illustrations!
Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2018
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Hurray, this book finally arrived today! (I ordered it months ago.) It definitely lives up to its promise. The artwork is intricate, fascinating, and gorgeous. The poetry is fresh, fun and informative. I bought this for my toddler grandson, and had to be very careful. He was so excited by it and wanted to ripe the pages! My 10-year-old grandson is quite the naturalist, and he loves the illustrations, the poems, and especially the Learn More! boxes which lead him to more information about the builders he is curious about. Altogether, a book that offers so much: a look into the hidden world of builders and tunnelers, beautiful explanations of how they feed and hunt, mate and build. The poems are alive with rhythmic fun. This is a must for the child's library!
2 people found this helpful
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Julie and Ken Slesarik
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent addition to any home or classroom library!
Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2018
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This is a very well thought out poetry collection that deserves a spot in any classroom library. The poems have a very pleasing resolution that gently introduce a manageable fact about creatures that build. As a teacher, I can see this book sparking curiosity in young readers and the back matter adds to the overall presentation with its subcategories of underground, on land, in water and in air builders. I found the use of line placement and stanzas very complimentary to the excellent illustrations, that are beautiful but don’t compete with or overpower the well-crafted poems. Highly recommended.
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Deanna L. Schuler
5.0 out of 5 stars Great connections
Reviewed in the United States on March 14, 2019
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I really enjoyed using this book to help me announce to my class that I had a baby on the way... we were able to connect it to our ongoing Poetry Unit and connect it to our animal research in science! The students love guessing the different animals and guessing why I picked the book! Poetry from David always makes learning and sharing more fun!
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veda
5.0 out of 5 stars A science lesson for all of us
Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2018
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The poems are wonderful, of course. The illustrations are first-rate. The organization of builders underground, on land, in water, and in the air divides this book so kids can easily make the connection of where these creatures live. I learned a bit myself, since sun coral were added as "A Different Kind of Builder." The formation of coral reefs are hard to understand, but kids will get it after listening to or reading this fun book.
One person found this helpful
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Alice Hollinbeck
5.0 out of 5 stars Fun and educational
Reviewed in the United States on December 3, 2018
I wrote this review for the Seattle Book Review. There are many builders in the animal kingdom, builders who use sticks and grass and hair and mud and spit and other materials they can scrounge up or create to build nests, some of quite extraordinary design. And when people think of nests, they most often will think of birds, but the reality is many animals build nests and the variety is endless. People might not think of fish as nest-building creatures, but of the dozen animal builders listed, two are fish. The three-spined stickleback fish actually builds a tunnel nest from plant material and sand while the artistic white-spotted pufferfish spends days arranging sand and seashells into a design nest. Spiders, snakes, rodents, and more fill the pages in this lovely book.

Poet and writer David L. Harrison has developed a charming collection of poems about a variety of creatures with a mixture of poetic forms. Excellent informational back-matter will keep youngsters learning. The cut-paper art Giles Laroche created to illustrate these poems are the perfect complement to Harrison’s writing. Youngsters will enjoy finding the fine details in the illustrations while being captured by the fresh rhythm and rhymes of the poems.
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