What an absolutely delightful and wondrous little book! Carol Zelaya, along with her illustrator Kristin Metcalf has created a true little gem with this one! Emily the Chickadee is the story of a little girl who strikes up a loving relationship with a small chickadee, which she names Emily, and eventually Emily’s family. There is not one aspect of this work that is not charming.The entire story is written in rhyme, and simple rhyme at that, which tells of a loving tale between the little girl and nature, specifically, a small Chickadee. You can sense the author’s love for nature throughout her writing and her understanding in children. If you consider an author that can put their writing ability to good use, along with their love of nature and children, you have a pretty potent combination.
The art work in this small book is a delight to the eye. The artist, Ms Metcalf has used smooth bright colors and has used these colors in a very effective way. No jumble of eye distracting detail is present. What you see is what you get. Her paintings of the birds and various flowers and other plant life are extremely appealing and anatomically correct in ever way. This lady apparently knows her subject!
Now I have to admit that being an avid birder, flower gardener and amateur naturalist for over 60 years makes me quite susceptible to the subject matter here, but by any standards, this is a well crafted book. I did read this one to two of my young nephews and they did like it. This is a pretty good endorsement as these two young men are quite jaded in their respective five and six literature selections.
I have to agree whole heartedly with another reviewer here in that I was delighted to note that the author approached the entire subject through observation, never once having the little girl interfering with nature’s natural process. I like that as it is a good lesson for children (and some adults.) I also had to agree that the binding of the book and the entire construction was wonderful. This book will be able to hold up for quite a number of years.
Everything about this work is a complete class act. This would make a perfect stocking stuffer for Christmas or just as a gift out of the blue to one of the wee ones. I highly recommend this one.
Considerations :::
We could not find a Reading Level for this book, so the best assumption would be that you will need to read this to your children.
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