Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* Illustrator Meade (a Caldecott Honor winner for Hush! A Thai Lullaby, 1996) takes the writing reins, too, in this lovely ode to setting out on your own. With delicate, quirky rhythm, Meade describes the indecision of a little bird in a comfortable nest. The book begins by revealing the bird's apprehension. If in all of forever, / I never endeavor / to fly, I won't know if I can. On subsequent pages, the bird goes back and forth, weighing the pros and cons in nimble verse. I could try / and find / that I flap / and I flail, / flounder and plummet, / look foolish / and fail. Meade pictures the range of possibilities tumbling, rising high, getting lost in the forest, and pluckin. a sweet bug from the sky. Combining watercolors, linoleum-block printing, and collage, Meade's spreads feature blue and white skies that seem to go on forever, sturdy-looking trees and branches, and an ambivalent yellow bird made of cleverly cut paper. By the end, the bird has, of course, learned to fly, and the analogy with the human need to venture from home is perfectly clear. It's a bumpy flight, yet one that manages to be both celebratory and comforting.--Nolan, Abb. Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Playful verse and thoughtfully developed artwork distinguish Meade's (In the Wild) meditation on the anxiety of attempting something new. "If in all of forever,/ I never endeavor/ to fly, I won't know if I can," says a yellow bird, peeping out of its nest. Nest and pine branch are densely textured block-print cutouts set against blue washed skies; the dusky yellow nestling's feathers are shaded with a brush dipped in green. After some waffling ("On the one wing,/ I could try/ and find/ that I flap/ and I fail"), the bird realizes that not flying will bring regret ("I won't know how it feels to/ scallop the air/ with a dip/ and a glide") and takes the plunge. The navigation of this perennial dilemma is animated both by Meade's visual intelligence (white space between brushstrokes represents air currents disturbed as birds wing by, giving a remarkable sense of what flight must feel like) and her poetic integrity ("If I hadn't endeavored/ and found my wings clever,/ I never a sky/ would have scaled,/ never a world/ would have seen"). A quiet but noteworthy achievement, and a possible sleeper hit for graduation season. Ages 4-8. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Meade's poetic message, delivered by a baby bird in its nest, is that you cannot succeed if you don't try. ("If in all of forever,/I never endeavor/to fly, I won't know if I can.") For a nestling, attempting to fly can be dangerous, but can also lead to finding friends, catching a meal, and seeing the world. While the message is a fine one to pass along to young children, in this instance it seems clearly intended for other young birds. The forced poetic text includes some sophisticated words and flipped phrases that hold little meaning for most preschoolers ("If I did endeavor, and found my wings clever,/I could see the world!"), yet the message itself is too simplistic for older children. The handsome artwork is clearly the focus here. Nearly all of Meade's eye-catching, stylized illustrations feature striking, patterned linoleum block prints in shades of green and brown on cutouts of tree trunks, branches, foliage, and a nest containing the yellow bird in whose voice the narrative is written. All of them are set against spreads of watercolor sky in several shades of blue and white.-Susan Scheps, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH (c) Copyright 2011. 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
Meade plays with word order, alliteration, and vocabulary in her entertaining text about a young bird psyching itself up to leave the nest and attempt to fly: "If in all of forever, / I never endeavor / to fly, I won't know if I can." Attractive collage illustrations, featuring watercolors and linoleum block prints, help express the fledgling's ambivalent emotions. (c) Copyright 2011. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
(Picture book. 4-8)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
