Water

by Frank Asch, Deborah Halverson (Editor)

Overview

Deep in the earth and high in the sky, water is all around us. Beautiful watercolor illustrations show the many locations of water on the Earth, from a salty tear to a winding river.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780152023485
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	04/01/2000
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	58,082
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.14(d)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

FRANK ASCH has written and illustrated more than sixty books for children, including the popular Good Night, Baby Bear. He lives in Vermont.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Visually appealing...a useful and attractive way to develop an appreciation for the environment in young readers.—School Library Journal
"Reminds us of all the beauty that water can bring."—Booklist
"Seldom has plain old water appeared so colorful....Asch celebrates water's many forms with a succinct text and lush paintings."—Kirkus Reviews

Editorial Reviews

"Visually appealing...a useful and attractive way to develop an appreciation for the environment in young readers.—School Library Journal
"Reminds us of all the beauty that water can bring."—Booklist
"Seldom has plain old water appeared so colorful....Asch celebrates water's many forms with a succinct text and lush paintings."—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

Stylistically and thematically reminiscent of Asch's recent The Earth and I, this picture book offers variations on a basic ecological concept: the importance (and omnipresence) of water. With simple, declarative sentences, the author runs through a litany of definitions, from the specific (``Water is rain. Water is dew'') to the abstract (``Water is high in the sky. Water is deep in the earth''). Unfortunately, the cumulative effect of the ``Water is'' construction is tiresome; teachers and purists may object to misleading statement (``Water is what fish breathe''). The accompanying watercolor and acrylic illustrations are appropriately liquidy and abundantly prismatic, with colors bleeding into one another for a rainbow effect. The result includes striking, multicolored snowflakes, confetti-like rainstorms and striped waterfalls. Wavering between narrative and nonfiction, this title struggles to find an appropriate audience. For a more solid-er, fluid-presentation, see Ken Robbins's Water (Children's Forecasts, Nov. 28), a photo-essay released last season. Ages 3-7. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Life as we know it would not exist without water. "Water is high in the sky. Water is deep in the earth." Frank Asch's book Water explores the wet world we live in. With vibrant, rainbow-rich illustrations, young children discover that water is essential; that it moves, flows and takes different forms: from raindrop to snowflake, from tiny brook to wide, wide sea. A funny city scene shows how people use water for everything from cool drinks and bathing to car washing, heating systems, fire fighting and even for water balloons.

Children's Literature - Victoria Crenson

PreS-Gr 1-This celebration of water is a companion volume to The Earth and I (Harcourt, 1994), and shares its format and theme-nature appreciation. Asch identifies some of the many places water is found, from the obvious (rivers, lakes, rain, ice) to the not so obvious (clouds, dew, a tear). Although most examples will be familiar to young children, the picture of clouds with the caption ``Water is high in the sky'' may confuse them. A double-page spread of an urban scene shows the many uses of water, from car washing to putting out fires. As in The Earth and I, brightly hued watercolor, acrylic, and colored-pencil illustrations executed in collage style create a kaleidoscopic effect. However, despite the vivid colors and flowing lines, some of them appear static. Overall, though, the book is visually appealing. Michelle Koch's World Water Watch (Greenwillow, 1993) offers a similar message at a slightly higher level and provides more substantial information. Asch's title is not an essential purchase, but it is a useful and attractive way to develop an appreciation for the environment in young readers.-Heide Piehler, Shorewood Public Library, WI

School Library Journal