Under, Over, By the Clover: What Is a Preposition?

by Brian P. Cleary, Brian Gable (Illustrator)

Overview

Have fun learning about language!

In this fun-filled book, playful puns and comical cartoon cats combine to show, not tell, readers what prepositions are all about. Each preposition in the text, like under, over, by the clover, about, throughout, and next to Rover, is highlighted in color for easy identification. This is the newest addition to the Words Are CATagorical series, which has sold more than 2.9 million copies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781575052014
Publisher:	Lerner Publishing Group
Publication date:	08/01/2003
Series:	Words Are Categorical Series
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	140,087
Product dimensions:	7.13(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.13(d)
Lexile:	480L (what's this?)
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

Brian P. Cleary is an American humorist, poet, and author. He is best known for his books written for grade-school children that explore grammar, math and poetry in humorous ways. In his role in the digital division of American Greetings, he's put words in the mouths of Dolly Parton, Christina Aguilera, William Shatner, Meghan Trainor and more. The multi-million selling author has performed poetry workshops in 500 elementary schools across the county. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

Brian Gable is the illustrator of many of the best-selling Words Are CATegorical® books, as well as the Math Is CATegorical® series. Mr. Gable lives in Toronto, Canada.

Editorial Reviews

"Prepositions show us where, like in your bed, beside the chair " With snappy rhyme and comic illustrations, Under, over, by the Clover: What Is a Preposition? marks the fourth book in the Words Are Categorical series by Brian P. Cleary, illus. by Brian Gable. This summer, look for the paperback edition of their To Root, to Toot, to Parachute: What Is a Verb? (Aug.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Gr 2-4-The fourth in a series about the parts of speech, this book explains that a preposition "connects a noun or pronoun to other words in a sentence." Gable's colorful cartoonlike creatures show prepositions in action, such as "beside the chair," "During recess after school, in between the pond and pool" and "next to Rover." The prepositions are all printed in different colors, which draws attention to them. Ruth Heller's Behind the Mask: A Book about Prepositions (Grosset & Dunlap, 1995) is another choice for students, but Cleary's snappy rhymes and clear explanations of usage are also very appealing.-Wendy S. Carroll, Montclair Cooperative School, NJ Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

Cleary (To Root, to Toot, to Parachute: What Is a Verb?, 2001, etc.) details the ins and outs of prepositions in this fourth entry in his Words Are Categorical series. The rhyming grammar lesson is illustrated this time by newcomer Gable with cartoon-style cats in creative color combinations demonstrating the prepositions, which are printed in bright colors for additional emphasis. The reader sees cats in bed, beside the chair, and in many other locations, including a raft heading toward Mississippi, with more cats going "through the yard of Chris, the hippie." Cleary also dismisses the outdated rule banning sentences ending in prepositions with a clever rhyme: "Ever since the olden days, there's been a silly myth / That prepositions aren't correct to end a sentence with." His humorous text does a solid but entertaining job of introducing different types of prepositions and formulating a workable definition. Although not as visually appealing as Ruth Heller's similar series on the parts of speech, this work will be used by teachers in the elementary-school classroom, especially in schools where the others in the series are popular. (Nonfiction. 7-9)

Kirkus Reviews