A Seed Is Sleepy

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Overview

Award-winning artist Sylvia Long and author Dianna Hutts Aston have teamed up again to create this gorgeous and informative introduction to seeds. Poetic in voice and elegant in design, the book introduces children to a fascinating array of seed and plant facts, making it a guide that is equally at home being read on a parent's lap as in a classroom reading circle.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

Favorite series and successful formats come to the fore this spring. In a starred review of An Egg Is Quiet, PW wrote, "Like the subject matter it describes, this book packages with understated elegance the substantive matter found within it." The same could be said of its companion, A Seed Is Sleepy by Dianna Hutts Aston, illus. by Sylvia Long. A similar approach contrasts fruit seeds ("A seed is fruitful"), from Papaya seeds to a Texas barberry, with the majestic redwood ("Who would guess that a seed as small as a freckle would grow into the world's tallest tree?") and the ancient seed of an extinct date palm tree found in Israel-when planted, "it sprouted!" Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature

In this worthy follow-up to their An Egg Is Quiet, Aston and Long celebrate the magic that makes a seed—"sleepy…tucked inside. Snug. Still." —become a flower. Each double page poetically describes the state of a seed, with text in script-like print, while additional information is added in regular type, along with a host of clearly labeled naturalistic ink and watercolor illustrations that fill, almost dance across, the rest of the pages. We follow various kinds of seeds as they spread or are carried to a place where they can grow. And then a seed is thirsty, hungry, clever, and finally "awake!" Although the intent here is to deliver information about a wide variety of seeds, Long illustrates the facts in an artistically sensitive manner. Her ink lines present the smallest details where needed, while the watercolors depict the ultimate end of the seeds' objectives, from a violet's purple flower to the stages of a bean plant's development, to the glorious double-page celebration of giant sunflowers. The introductory double-page spread depicts a host of clearly labeled seeds, while the final spread shows the plants that emerge from each.

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Children's Literature

As they did with An Egg is Quiet, Aston and Long have teamed up to produce another beautiful and informative book. The opening spread with its colorful array of seeds is enough to intrigue any reader. As the book relates, some seeds lay in the soil waiting for the right conditions before they sprout. Some may take a few months, others like the Texas mountain laurel might wait ten years. Young readers will learn that ninety percent of the plants on Earth are flowering plants, and it is the fruits that help to protect and sometimes nourish the seeds. The spread showing the life cycle of beans, rice, pumpkins, and a few other seeds is quite enlightening, as is the detailed look at the bean seed. The varieties in nature are stupendous—ranging from a tiny orchid seed which looks smaller than the periods at the end of a sentence to the gigantic coco de mer palm, which can weigh up to sixty pounds. Seeds wait for the right time to propagate; they may travel in various ways—in the air, floating on water, or through the excrement that an animal leaves behind. The process of photosynthesis is described, and the final spread shows a bright array of big yellow sunflowers—which are now definitely awake. Kids can challenge themselves to match up the seeds from the initial spread to the plants they produce as depicted in the final spread. It is a wonderful way to introduce science to young children.

School Library Journal

Gr 1-4 - Another contemplative look at the natural world from the pair who created An Egg Is Quiet(Chronicle, 2006). This introduction to seeds and plants uses simple sentences that will stretch children's minds and imaginations. Each spread is devoted to the seed's many attributes, including adventurous, inventive, generous, ancient, and clever. The text then builds on these descriptors with interesting facts: "It knows to seek the sunlight...." The author does not shy away from words that children may be unfamiliar with; rather, she constructs sentences that define these words in terms that children can understand: "Not all seeds are eager to germinate. Some have lain dormant, or slept undisturbed, for more than a thousand years." Long's ink-and-watercolor sketches, full of rich color and intricate detail, merit high praise. Readers not yet familiar with cursive writing may experience some difficulty deciphering portions of the text independently, but this book is a wonderful addition to units that focus not only on seeds and plants, but also on writing and the language arts.-Maura Bresnahan, High Plain Elementary School, Andover, MA

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780811855204
Publisher: Chronicle Books LLC
Publication date: 2/22/2007
Pages: 40
Sales rank: 75,321
Age range: 5 - 10 Years
Lexile: AD750L (what's this?)
Product dimensions: 9.50 (w) x 11.25 (h) x 0.50 (d)

Meet the Author

Dianna Hutts Aston's previous books include An Egg Is Quiet, When You Were Born, Loony Little, and Bless This Mouse. She lives in Texas Hill Country.

Sylvia Long is the illustrator of many best-selling books for children Her previous books include An Egg Is Quiet, Sylvia Long's Mother Goose, and Snug As a Bug. She lives in Scottsdale, Arizona.

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preschool21

Posted February 21, 2010

This book made me appreciate mother nature and her beautiful creations.

I am a preschool teacher of 30 years and I am always looking for new and interesting books that teach as well as entertain. This book has beautiful illustrations and the writing is simple and elegant. This will be on my library shelf for many years to come.
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A Seed Is Sleepy

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This book made me appreciate mother nature and her beautiful creations.