Do You Know Which Ones Will Grow?

by Susan A. Shea, Tom Slaughter (Illustrator)

Overview

Do you know about Grow's glow? Earning starred reviews and chosen as an ALA Notable selection, this striking nonfiction book explores the differences between living and non-living things. School Library Journal declared it "a standout concept book [that's] engaging, fun . . . and a favorite for storytimes or one-on-one settings." (App also available.)

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781609050627
Publisher:	Blue Apple Books
Publication date:	03/30/2011
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	38
Sales rank:	233,471
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Tom Slaughter is the illustrator of several books for children. In addition to his work as a book illustrator, he has also designed posters, playbills, watches, and T-shirts. Tom's artwork has been shown in solo exhibitions around the world. He has worked in collaboration with Durham Press, and his prints are in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art. He lives New York City.

Susan A. Shea makes her children's book debut with Do You Know Which Ones Will Grow? Susan, a former teacher, shared her love of reading with elementary school students. Now she lives on Cape Cod with her husband. When she's not writing or traveling, she photographs things that grow.

Editorial Reviews

Slaughter's brightly colored cut-paper shapes and newcomer Shea's verse recall favorites of 50 years ago—a feeling reinforced by this book's matte pages, blocky images, and fun-to-flip gatefolds. "If a duckling grows/ and becomes a duck,/ can a car grow and become..." reads the text on facing pages; children will be able to guess what's coming even before the gatefold opens—"a truck?" Slaughter (Which Way?) revels in paint-box primaries, pushing reds, greens, yellows, and blues up against each other for maximum visual charge. The gatefolds break in interesting places—halfway down a garment hanging on a hanger, for example, turning a floral sweater into a full-length coat—and contain the occasional die-cut, too. Shea's verses scan consistently and gracefully. "YES to ducks, bears, and owls./ NO to trucks, chairs, and towels," she writes, reinforcing the idea that living things grow but inanimate objects don't. The beauty of the rhymes is that they teach a lesson children already know; children will relish the fun of being sure of all the answers, and they'll love Shea's tongue-in-cheek tone. Ages 4–up. (May)

Publishers Weekly

PreS-Gr 2—This standout concept book is engaging, fun, and interactive. It begins by explaining that, "Some things grow/like you and me./Others stay the way/they're made./Until they crack, or rust,/or fade." Simple, spare rhyming text flows smoothly with illustrations that follow on pages that include die cuts and flaps; "If a kitten grows,/becomes a cat,/can a cap grow and become… a hat?" The answers are provided at the end. Layers of painted paper collage are done in a brightly colored palette, including end pages with bold paintbrush stripes in primary and secondary colors. White space is creatively used, but the flaps and die cuts steal the show. For example, the spread featuring snakes in saturated black, yellow, and green pops on the white background. A pickup truck grows to be a rig when the flap is opened. The flatbed becomes the trailer enhanced with a pattern that resembles the American flag. Readers will be challenged by the questions and some unusual words for the names of a few baby animals: a kit, an owlet, a kid, and a joey. This clever title begs for multiple readings and will be a favorite in storytimes or in one-on-one settings. Spot-on.—Anne Beier, Clifton Public Library, NJ

School Library Journal

Shea's children's-book debut is a clever, rhymed test of kids' notions of living and nonliving things that's great for both lap and group sharing. "If you look around you'll see, / Some things grow, like you and me... / Do you know which ones will grow? / Think, then answer yes or no." What follows is a terrific interplay of rhyming questions and cunningly designed gatefold illustrations: "If a calf grows and becomes a cow, / can a shovel grow and become.../ a plow?" The left side pictures the cows, while the right-hand page shows a huge shovel and pail. A flip of the fold reveals the corner of the shovel becoming a part of a truck-mounted plow. Other rhymes include duck and truck, bear and chair, cat and hat, goat and coat, towel and owl, snake and cake, pig and rig, fox and clock and kangaroo and you. The final two pages summarize the answers, still keeping the rhythm and rhyme. Slaughter's illustrations bring pop art to mind: vivid reds, blues, yellows and greens, few details, simple backgrounds and blocks of color. Many of the objects are cut-paper silhouettes against a painted background. Between its allure as an audience-participation read-aloud and its numerous classroom uses (living/nonliving, analogies, rhymes, spelling rules, baby animal names, creative thinking...) clear a space on the shelves for this one, even though it may never be there for long. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews