Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* Frost, whose previous books include novels in verse such as The Braid (2006) and Printz Honor Book Keesha's House (2003), found inspiration in her own backyard for this picture book, which shows the interconnected life cycles of the monarch butterfly and the milkweed plant. The story begins with the growth of a milkweed shoot and the northward migration of a monarch, which alights on the plant, finds a mate, lays her eggs on the undersides of milkweed leaves, and flies away. Soon an egg hatches and a tiny caterpillar walks, eats, grows, and forms a chrysalis. Then a monarch emerges and flies away. While the butterflies summer in the north, the milkweed's leaves turn brown and seed pods form. In September, the monarchs wing their way southward toward Mexico, and the following spring, the cycle begins again. From the endpapers, with their lovely maps showing monarch-butterfly migration routes, to the author's note commenting on monarch migration and the importance of the host plant, every aspect of this pleasing book contributes to the whole. With a fine sense of form and use of texture, Gore creates a dappled, organic look in the acrylic-and-pastel illustrations, which suit Frost's spare, poetic story well.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2008 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-4-This lyrical nonfiction picture book emphasizes the special relationship between the monarch and its host plant, the milkweed. Readers see the last phase of the butterfly's northward migration; the milkweed-dependent cycle of egg, chrysalis, and caterpillar; and the beginnings of the new journey south. Progression of the milkweed's growth cycle is interwoven with that of the monarch. Scientific information is offered in a poetic way that conveys a sense of awe at the wonders of nature, infusing feeling into the facts without anthropomorphizing. The gentle illustrations with soft colors and a grainy focus create a sense of quiet inevitability. The narrative remains butterfly-centric throughout, with no human observers wanted or needed. An author's note provides additional information but retains the sense of wonder, daring readers to dream as it explains that "Although we have learned a lot about Monarch and Milkweed, many mysteries remain for future scientists to explore." A lovely choice for natural-science curricula or for simple enjoyment.-Heidi Estrin, Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel, Boca Raton, FL (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Frost's poetic narrative gives equal time to the life cycles of the monarch butterfly and the milkweed plant it depends on, emphasizing the mutual relationship between the two during the pollination (plant) and larval (insect) stages. The soft-focus acrylic and pastel illustrations bring readers from plant level up into the sky with the monarchs in flight. Websites. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
There are books aplenty on monarch butterflies, on their remarkable life cycle and even more remarkable transcontinental migration. This one, however, although it touches on both themes, chooses a slightly different angle, as evidenced in the title: It gives equal billing to the monarch's botanical partner, the milkweed. The precise prose personifies both plant and butterfly, alternating between the two over the course of a year, from spring to spring. By elevating the humble milkweed, the text invites readers to consider the whole environment rather than simply one part of it--a happy introduction to a sophisticated view of the world. Gore's pastel-and-acrylic illustrations are liquidly textured, a lovely counterpoint to Frost's poetic language. Their full-color, full-bleed beauty lovingly details the milkweed from flowering to the splitting of its pods in the fall; the butterflies are equally exquisite, from caterpillar through chrysalis to adult insect, subtle shifts in proportion and composition leading the reader's eye through the changes. It's no easy feat to make something stationary that's as dynamic as a butterfly--these illustrations manage it handily. (author's note) (Picture book/nonfiction. 3-7) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
