A Drop of Water

October 1, 2006
K-Gr 2-Beginning with a child exploring the water in a creek, Morrison imagines how a drop on his finger made its journey through the water cycle. Detailed, multicolored illustrations take readers high in the sky as the red-tailed hawk flies and the raindrops fall, providing a view of the marsh and the mountain stream from above. Finally, the pictures zoom back to a close-up of the boy to complete the circle. Readers can appreciate this narration on two levels: first, as a simple story of the hydrologic cycle; and second, as a search to find various types of plants and animals. Three pages of informative facts about each bird, mammal, and plant pictured are appended. Walter Wicks spectacular "Drop of Water" (Scholastic, 1997) is for slightly older children. Morrisons title will especially resonate with young readers who live near or frequent rural areas, where they can appreciate firsthand the power of a single drop of water."Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA"

Copyright 2006 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2006
K-Gr. 3. The latest picture book by the writer-illustrator of " Nature in the Neighborhood" (2004) follows the downhill path of rainwater. "A child's finger is wet with water from a meadow brook." On a nearby mountaintop, rainwater flows into a stream that falls over a cliff, through a mountain pool and an upland bog, past a beavers' dam, through a lowland swamp and a meadow marsh, and past the child who crouches by the brook. Each double-page spread opens on a new scene, deftly illustrated in pencil drawings that are brightened with colors to highlight portions of the picture. The few lines of text per spread point out examples of plants and animals in the illustrations. Though some children will find the quiet, ever-informative text soporific, others may enjoy looking for the specific animals and plants named there. Appended notes with thumbnail pencil illustrations offer help in identifying the species mentioned. Though the large-scale, close-up cover art will appeal to preschoolers, the landscape pictures inside are better suited to an older audience.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2007
This journey of rainwater down a mountainside invites readers to contemplate the interdependence of water, life, and land. Each double-page spread creatively showcases a body of water and selected plants and animals in the immediate vicinity. Further away from the water, the colors and details quietly fade away. Additional information about the plants and animals is appended.

(Copyright 2007 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)