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Show Us Where You Live, Humpback
Greystone
Kids, May, 2021
ISBN 978-1-77164-573-7 |
Show Us Where You Live, Humpback
was released on May 23, 2021 with Greystone Kids.
The book in
free verse for children 3-7 years celebrates a child’s connection
with the magnificent humpback whales.
In a call-and-response
format a mother shares the wonder of the whales with her child
and the child shows how he can swim, sing and blow bubbles just
like the whales. With the stunning illustrations by Japanese artist
Sakika Kikuchi, readers are left dreaming of the wonderful
world we share with whales.
Some people
might wonder why I would write about Humpback whales. Humpbacks
are not as sleek as the popular Orcas and not as big as the gigantic
blue whales, and Humpbacks are not really beautiful. In fact,
the skin of their heads is covered in big nobs like the bumps
on dill pickles! But Humpbacks are wonderful whales, powerful
and graceful. They are often called ‘sea birds’ because their
long pectoral fins look like wings when the whales breach in high
leaps into the air. Sometimes Humpbacks' wide mouths make me think
they are smiling at me.
Around the
world people share the wonder of watching humpback whales as they
migrate in great numbers from the cold oceans to the warm seas
to give birth and raise their calves.
Once, when I
was swimming in Hawaii, I ducked my head underwater and was surrounded
with the male mating songs. It was magical to share their underwater
world and made me want to tell children about them in a book.
I knew children would share the wonder I feel.
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Reviews:
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STARRED review
"[Beryl Young's] lovely, soaring language - reflects
great admiration and wonder for all humpback whales... A true homage
to these wondrous creatures."
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Kirkus Books, Spring 2021
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Highly Recommended
"Through language and art that perfectly echoes the soothing
sway of the ocean's waves, Show Us Where You Live, Humpback,
is a delightful picture book which tells the story of the connections
children share with whales."
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Canadian Materials, April
2021
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5 Star Review *****
"The child compares himself to the whale and her calf in an endearing
way.......Any child who has been on a whale watch, or wants to go
on one will enjoy this lovely book."
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Youth Services Book Review
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"Show Us Where You Live, Humpback is a gem of
a picture book, intricately constructed ........... so that it is
a book that can provide an intelligent introduction to whales. Are
you looking for a book that can lull children to sleep? Are you
looking for a book that can encourage an appreciation for our shared
planet Earth? Young and Kikuchi answer each of these calls."
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The Ormsby Review, December,
2021
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"Beryl Young’s lyrical text celebrates a child’s connection
with whales. Perfect to read aloud, one is transported by the beauty
and drama in the author's wordplay. Helpful facts about humpbacks
are included in a separate section.
Juxtaposed with the child's environment on land, Sakika Kikuchi's
alluring watercolour illustrations submerge readers into the blue
realm of the deep ocean. 'Now we will drift and dream of the wide
sea and the whales… in this wondrous world we share.' "
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Canadian Children's Book
Centre, September, 2021
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"Young's poetic whimsy is matched with illustrations in
soft, watercolour by Japan-based Sakika Kikuchi."
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BC Bookworld, Vancouver,
BC
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"Children and baby whales love many of the same things
– swimming, singing, making noises and blowing bubbles.
This gorgeously illustrated book celebrates the special bond between
a mother humpback whale and her baby calf, and shows how their underwater
lives can be touchingly like our own. In a call and response format
that children will really relate to, this endearing story is ideal
for reading aloud: learning new words and about new worlds.
Mother whales teach their offspring in the same way that all mothers
do, staying close by until the little calves fend for themselves.
Can you puff, blow and jump in the air just like them?"
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Australian Chronicle, July
2021
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"Beryl Young's lyrical paean to the great sea mammal follows
a mama humpback and her whale calf as they whack their fins, thwap
their flukes and sing a 'chorus of silver sonnets' in the dark water.
Sakika Kikuchi's soft-toned watercolors capture the gentle majesty
of these creatures and the 'wondrous world we share.'"
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Washington Parent, Washington,
D.C. July, 2021
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Two reviews from Australia:
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5 Star review *****
"Show Us Where You Live, Humpback is a beautifully presented
hardcover that will captivate children from start to finish and
will probably give them an affinity to these giant yet peaceful
creatures who call the ocean home. Best of all, it's a real-world
story that is brought to life by it's engaging story, interesting
facts and amazing illustrations."
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Impulse Gamer: Books, Highly
recommended. Summer, 2021
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"As the 'humpback highway' gathers momentum and more and
more of our young readers have the privilege of seeing these majestic
creatures, this is a timely release of the story of a humpback whale
and her calf and how they bond and learn, grow and change and how
that process parallels the development of the child.
Beautifully illustrated, this is a charming story of two not normally
viewed together, answering the child's questions as well as offering
a new wondrous perspective of these magnificent mammals."
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The Bottom Shelf, July 2021
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