Alaska's 12 Days of Summer (PAWS IV)
PreSchool-Grade 2-The traditional song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" gets a new treatment in this lighthearted picture book. With artwork by a popular Alaskan illustrator, it shows the typical fauna-moose, black and brown bears, caribou, bald eagles, sandhill cranes, and even mosquitoes-cavorting under the midnight sun. As the cumulative verses unfold, Cartwright's spreads become more and more crowded with activity and interesting details, such as the footprints of some of the animals along river and pond banks. Meanwhile, small-print, parallel text relates facts about the depicted animals and their central Alaska habitat. The illustrations show a landscape with a veritable traffic jam of wildlife, but it's all in fun. The effort to cram all the animals in the 11th and 12th days creates some awkward design logistics, but the kids will not complain. This book might be classified as fluff for the tourist souvenir stands, but kids will see it as fun whether they find it in their library or receive it as a souvenir of their grandparents' trip north.Sue Sherif, Alaska State Library, AnchorageCopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.