In simple, rhythmic prose, a little girl learns from her mother the cycle from sheep to wool to sweater. Each picture shows a different part of the process, starting with feeding the sheep and ending with knitting a sweater, including sheering, carding, dyeing, and more along the way.This is an educational story to read to young children who will be fascinated to see the process that leads up to the finished process. It's also a sweet and warm story showing a mother's love for her daughter and the passing of the seasons on a farm. The simple rhymed refrain at the end of each section of text is perfect for making this a gentle bedtime story.
U'Ren's art is simple and clear enough so that children can understand the various processes, but also includes fun pictures of the little girl playing with the wool and her dog and snuggling up to her mother.
Verdict: Recommended. I haven't seen any other sheep stories, especially not any that manage to be both informative and entertaining.
ISBN: 9780374322960; Published March 2010 by Farrar, Straus & Giroux; Borrowed from the library.
4 comments:
Sheep stories: We also love Charlie Needs a Cloak by Tomie dePaola. The sheep are hilarious and it describes the process of shearing to finished product.
I knew about the classic Pelle's New Suit, but I didn't know dePaola had done a sheep story. I have to admit I'm not a big fan of his art, so that's probably why I missed it.
Oh, I'm not really a fan of his art either, but you must read "Charlie Needs a Cloak" if you haven't already. It's a keeper. The sheep are so funny and there's a mouse that keeps stealing things (my toddler son loves to point the mouse out). It's one of the books from my childhood that I can clearly remember reading.
Cool - one of my projects for next year is updating and renewing the library's picturebook collection. I must make sure we have that one when I do the DePaola section!
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