The simple language of the book is remarkable. With each turn of the page, we are introduced to another shade of green: "Forest green, sea green, lime green, pea green" and so much more. As described on the book's jacket cover, "there's the lush green of a forest on a late spring day, the fresh, juicy green of a just-cut lime, the incandescent green of a firefly, and the vivid aquamarine of a tropical sea." I absolutely love the way the whole story encourages children to delve into the wonderfully descriptive world of language, showing them how something as simple as a color can be described in so many different and unique ways. The verse is lyrically written, too, though we never manage to read it quickly enough to notice the rhyme scheme as we read aloud. In fact, I don't think I even realized that the lines rhymed until the fourth or fifth time we read it, since we were always too busy studying the illustrations.
And oh, the artwork! The texture of Seeger's acrylic paintings is simply gorgeous, and every time I read this book, I just want to reach into the pages and touch the illustrations. Her use of die-cuts is brilliant, as well, perfectly placed on each page in a way that never fails to delight and surprise us. My children and I just love flipping the pages back and forth after we peek through the cut outs, eager to see just what those colors were on the page before. Seeger's creativity and designs are simply incredible! They make me want to try our own die-cut artwork and see what we can come up with. Hmm... Perhaps I know what our art activity will be this afternoon...
Green is a 2013 Caldecott Honor book, and deservedly so. It also is a Kirkus Reviews Best Children's Book of 2012. Creative, engaging, and positively lovely, Green is one book that's not to be missed.
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