SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • Fusenews
  • Reviews
  • Librarian Previews
  • Best Books
    • Top 100
    • Best Books of 2022
    • Best Books of 2021
    • Best Books of 2020
    • Best Books of 2019
    • Best Books of 2018
    • Best Books of 2017
    • Best Books of 2016
    • Best Books of 2015
    • Best Books of 2014
    • Best Books of 2013
  • Fuse 8 n’ Kate
  • Videos
  • Press Release Fun

June 1, 2009 by Betsy Bird

Review of the Day: Redwoods by Jason Chin

June 1, 2009 by Betsy Bird   Leave a Comment

Redwoods
By Jason Chin
Roaring Brook
$16.95
ISBN: 978-1-59643-430-1
Ages 5-9
On shelves now

Is it easier to write an excellent work of fiction than an excellent work of non-fiction? It’s sort of a trick question. Still, I’d argue that a poor work of fiction is going to appeal to a child more immediately than a poor work of non-fiction. Hand a kid a terrible picture book and they’re going to at least give it a glance. But hand them a poor work of non-fiction and what’s their reaction? “Boooooring!” So superior informational books for kids not only have to be interesting and well written but they also have to fight against the intended audience’s learned prejudices. That’s where Jason Chin comes in. In this debut non-fiction picture book from Roaring Brook, Chin takes a page from the Magic School Bus school of writing for kids. You want facts? Fine. We’ll give you facts. And on top of that we’ll also give you a fun story, great visuals, and small furry creature evident on almost every single page. You have kids that think non-fiction is dull as dishwater? Meet the cure.

A boy finds a book sitting on a seat in a subway platform. He picks it up, possibly drawn to the cover, which shows himself standing in a redwood forest looking up. As he reads facts about redwood trees, we read the same thing. We learn how old the trees are, the kinds of ecosystems they prefer, their resistance to forest fires, how tall they can grow, etc. As we learn, so too does the boy, and soon enough he finds himself in his own forest, scaling the trees, escaping fires, and meeting the creatures that rely on the plants. By the end he has found himself on a park bench and, in a rush, leaves the book behind where a girl will find it and have adventures of her own.

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

About four pages into this book I had to flip back to the cover. I was worried. Did the illustrator of this book inform the author of what he was up to when he decided to give the story a narrative? Of course I quickly saw that Jason Chin not only wrote the book but illustrated it as well. Aaahhh. It’s interesting that on the surface the facts about redwoods inform the pictures but don’t describe them. While we’re hearing about a redwood tree’s natural ability to withstand forest fires, there runs our hero willy-nilly away from a magnificent blaze. And while we hear about the different forest residents that live in redwood forests, our hero is scaling a tree looking at them firsthand. Though the book doesn’t contain so much as a thought bubble, I began to think about graphic novels when considering Chin’s interaction between text and image. Though the text doesn’t rely on the pictures, the images do make significantly more sense when paired with the text.

As for those pictures themselves, they’re great. Full of action, adventure, and daring do (or is it "derring do"?). Young children, the pre-literacy crowd, may be drawn to the images at first and then enjoy the words later. Even better are the millions of tiny details peppered throughout this story. Kids will like noting that what the boy reads on the page is the same as what we are reading. I was particularly impressed that Chin managed to work the cover of this book into the art so many times. After all, covers of children’s books aren’t usually written in stone and can be prone to change. He must have established what the cover image would be right from the start before he even began. Kids will also love spotting the flying squirrel that attaches itself to the boy once he finds himself in redwood country (look closely and you’ll even spot it on the inside front bookflap). Third and fourth readings of the book reveal that the trash on the floor of the subway station consists of strange items with titles like “Polar Bear’s Last Stand”, possibly drilling home the book’s environmental message. Or maybe a future Chin project. And in a very interesting move, the title page of the book is from the boy’s p.o.v. You see his hands holding the book before you. But if you look a little closer at the page itself, the picture presented there isn’t of the boy, but of the girl who will come to pick up the book at the end of this tale.

I wouldn’t have thought it right off the bat, but I’ve seen Chin’s work before, and maybe you have too. Simon Winchester’s children’s version of adult book on Krakatoa was published as The Day the World Exploded. In that title there were the usual photographs, timelines, and documents. A little less common, however, were some illustrated portions. An elephant running rampant in a hotel room. People fleeing for their lives. That kind of thing. Turns out that Jason Chin was behind those shots. Like this book they didn’t necessarily interact directly with the text, but they added to the overall reading experience. I’m pleased to see him doing the same thing here.

Books where kids read books about themselves are not unheard of. I’m thinking of The Red Book by Barbara Lehmann, or any story the pokes a hole or two in the fourth wall. What I like so much about this book, however, is Chin’s easygoing dance between fiction and non-fiction. He seems at home in this format, and the result is an eclectic and exciting book. Kids who might never voluntarily pick up a book about trees can find themselves drawn into the “story” from page one. Trick ‘em into learning, that’s what I say. Though it would have been nice to find a small Bibliography or list of sources at the end, Redwoods is bound to become a fine, fun purchase. More memorable than your average tree fare, no question.

On shelves now.

Other Blog Reviews:

  • Kids Lit
  • Katie’s Literature Lounge
  • Curious George’s Notes from the Hut
  • Page by Page


Online Reviews:

  • SLJ & Horn Book & Bookist & & PW & Kirkus
  • Eclectica Magazine


Misc: 

  • It’s Non-Fiction Monday and Jean Little Library has the round-up.  Please to note.
  • A kind of freaky-good website is dedicated to the book.  You can see the interiors there.
  • Or page through it on Google Books here.
  • There is some additional information about the book at Color Magazine.
  • And an interview with Mr. Chin about the process on The Green Guide for Kids Blog.

Filed under: Reviews

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments

About Betsy Bird

Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: @fuseeight.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

March 2023

Review of the Day: Hands by Torrey Maldonado

by Betsy Bird

February 2023

Review of the Day: Afterward, Everything Was Different by Rafael Yockteng, ill. Jairo Buitrago

by Betsy Bird

February 2023

Review of the Day: Nearer My Freedom: The Interesting Life of Olaudah Equiano by Himself created by Monica Edinger and Lesley Younge

by Betsy Bird

February 2023

Review of the Day: The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams by Daniel Nayeri, ill. Daniel Miyares

by Betsy Bird

January 2023

Review of the Day: The Tree and the River by Aaron Becker

by Betsy Bird

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

2023 Caldecott Jump

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Bonds and Books: An Interview with Megan Dowd Lambert About Building Connections Through Family Reading

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Recent Graphic Novel Deals, Early Mar 2023 | News

by Johanna

Heavy Medal

March suggestions: early Mock Newbery possibilities

by Emily Mroczek-Bayci

Teen Librarian Toolbox

Popular Middle Grade Author Stuart Gibbs Launches a New Venture to Help Inspire and Guide Young Writers

by Karen Jensen, MLS

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

Newbery Medalist Amina Luqman-Dawson visits The Yarn

by Colby Sharp

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

Behind the Gender-free Utopia of 'Every Bird a Prince' with Jenn Reese

Books Restricted, Removed in MS, IA, OR, and FL Districts; 'Out of Darkness' Stays at NC High School | Censorship Roundup

Confronting 'Riley's Ghost' with John David Anderson

A Long Time Coming: Angeline Boulley's 'Firekeeper's Daughter' Takes 2022 Printz Award

Rosena Fung Depicts Anxiety as a Mean Girl | Middle Grade & Mental Health

About Betsy Bird

Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: @fuseeight.

Commenting for all posts is disabled after 30 days.

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

  • External Links

    • A Fuse #8 Production Reviews
  • Follow This Blog

    Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    Primary Sidebar

    • News & Features
    • Reviews+
    • Technology
    • School Libraries
    • Public Libraries
    • Age Level
    • Ideas
    • Blogs
    • Classroom
    • Diversity
    • People
    • Job Zone

    Reviews+

    • Book Lists
    • Best Books
    • Media
    • Reference
    • Series Made Simple
    • Tech
    • Review for SLJ
    • Review Submissions

    SLJ Blog Network

    • 100 Scope Notes
    • A Fuse #8 Production
    • Good Comics for Kids
    • Heavy Medal
    • Neverending Search
    • Teen Librarian Toolbox
    • The Classroom Bookshelf
    • The Yarn

    Resources

    • 2022 Youth Media Awards
    • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
    • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
    • Summer Reading 2021
    • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
    • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
    • Summer Programming Survey
    • Research
    • White Papers / Case Studies
    • School Librarian of the Year
    • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
    • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

    Events & PD

    • In-Person Events
    • Online Courses
    • Virtual Events
    • Webcasts
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Media Inquiries
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Content Submissions
    • Data Privacy
    • Terms of Use
    • Terms of Sale
    • FAQs
    • Diversity Policy
    • Careers at MSI


    COPYRIGHT © 2023


    COPYRIGHT © 2023