When a Line Bends . . . A Shape Begins

by Rhonda Gowler Greene, James Kaczman (Illustrator)

Overview

A line is thin. A line is narrow—curved like a worm, straight as an arrow. Squares, circles, triangles, and many more shapes abound in this lively book. With jaunty, rhyming text, young readers are invited to find different shapes on each busy, vibrant page. Once you start looking, you won’t be able to stop! The perfect book for little ones beginning to distinguish shapes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780618152414
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	09/24/2001
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	265,183
Product dimensions:	9.56(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.12(d)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

HONDA GOWLER GREENE is a former elementary and preschool teacher. She received her master's in educational media from Xavier University in 1983. She is also the author of Barnyard Song. 

James Kaczman received a bachelor of fine arts degree from Massachusetts College of Art in 1982 and also studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. He lives in a beautiful, green valley somewhere in the North, where he is a full-time illustrator. He resides there with his wife, Libby, his son, Henry, and a wire fox terrier named Chauncey, who is a funny, charming fellow.

Editorial Reviews

"In this well-conceived, bouncy and colorful primer, Greene builds up various geometric shapes from a line. . . . A clever and fun introduction to the assorted shapes." Publishers Weekly, Starred —

From the Publisher

In this well-conceived, bouncy and colorful primer, Greene (Barnyard Song) builds up various geometric figures from a line, the simplest element of every shape: "A line is thin. A line is narrow/ curved like a worm, straight as an arrow." Each spread acquaints readers with a single shape, from a square to a triangle to a circle. Beyond the basics, there are ovals ("An oval's like a circle, except it's not as stout. Two sides go in to make it thin. Two other sides go out"), diamonds ("A ballerina's legs form one when bending at the knees") and crescents ("It is a smile when curving up, when down it is a frown"). The introductions stop, appropriately, with a red octagon ("you see it at the corner. It tells the cars to wait"). Like concrete poetry, each verse takes on the shape it describes. Kaczman, in a remarkable picture book debut, incorporates images with sharp angles and smooth curves in full-bleed double-page spreads that orchestrate all of the elements of Greene's text. His precise renderings, evenly filled ink blocks and animal characters suggest J.otto Seibold's computer-generated geometric forms; however, his watercolors are slightly mottled, creating a grainy texture. In this clever and fun introduction to the assorted shapes, Greene and Kaczman collaborate effectively, clearly expounding an oval, square or octagon through bouncy rhyme, familiar examples and clean-edged artwork. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

"In this clever and fun introduction to assorted shapes, Greene and Kaczman collaborate effectively, clearly expounding an oval, square or octagon through bouncy rhyme, familiar examples and clean-edged artwork," wrote PW. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

PreS-Gr 2Ten shapes are presented in picture and verse. Along with the familiar circle, square, triangle, diamond, rectangle, octagon, and oval are the less frequent star, heart, and crescent. Each shape has its own verse and double-page spread packed with visual examples. There are even some extras for observant children to discover. The watercolor-and-ink illustrations are bold and clean, with ample color; however, a texturing technique occasionally results in a slightly murky appearance. At no time does this texturing obscure the text or interfere with line or shape. Those tired of bright primary colors in children's books may find the muting a nice change. A fine addition to units on shapes and a perky read-aloud.Jody McCoy, Lakehill Preparatory School, Dallas, TX

School Library Journal

Cataloging several examples for each of ten regular shapes, Greene develops in an ever-changing rhyme scheme the premise that all shapes are made from bent lines. It's an eye-opening insight for readers, but confusing when blocks are considered square, a bubble, marble, and "curled kitten" are included in the list of circles, and "star" is defined as "the shape of a fish." Readers may also falter at the triangle spread, since the three blocks of text are placed so that it's hard to tell in what order they're to be read; the "tent built just for you" has a triangular opening, but what children will notice is the diamond- shaped side. Kaczman's picture-book debut features a set of stylized, evenly colored, very simply drawn scenes, sometimes viewed from playfully skewed angles or featuring sight gags—a police officer chowing down on a doughnut, a kilted man playing hopscotch. Still, an instructional intent hangs heavy over this, and the examples are not always on target; a better book on the topic is Dayle Ann Dodds's The Shape of Things

Kirkus Reviews