Jerry Pallotta is an award-winning author of children's alphabet books and imaginative fiction. His books combine interesting facts, detailed research, humor, and realistic illustrations that mesmerize children everywhere. Jerry lives in Massachusetts with his wife, Linda. "Alphabet books constructed around a theme helpfully provide an extra clue for deciphering the word in question. Jerry Pallotta is the king of this subgenre..." The Horn Book. Shennen Bersani, mother of four, spent her childhood swimming, sailing, and seashell collecting. She attended the Art Institute of Boston and has been a freelance illustrator for over 15 years. She lives near Boston, Massachusetts.
An unusual butterfly book introduces facts about the insects,
portrays 24 different species, gives the word for "butterfly" in 27
languages other than English, and counts up from zero to 25.While
the numeration provides the organization, this is far more than a
counting book. Beginning with the fact that there are no
butterflies in Antarctica, the author goes on to surprise readers
with a spread of 20 colorful moths, highlighting the confusing
similarities between the two species, although not explaining their
actual differences. Then the proper count begins, with each page
presenting a different species, an interesting fact and a word for
"butterfly" in another language, including Mandarin, Finnish,
Navajo, Tagalog and sign. From one to 10, each species is also a
different solid color; Nos. 11 through 19 are multicolored, and the
20th shows eggs. Then there's a surprise: 21 different
caterpillars. To finish, there are chrysalises and more
butterflies. The counting, particularly in the larger groups, takes
enough effort to make this interesting to the likely audience. The
facts feel arbitrarily presented but they are accurate, and the
illustrations, done with colored pencil and digitally manipulated,
are colorful and true-to-life. Sadly, there's no index. This
welcome reworking of the author's earlier Butterfly Counting
Book (1998) and board book Butterfly Colors and Counting
(2013) offers learning opportunities galore.
-Kirkus Reviews Expanding on the subject of their 2013 board
book Butterfly Colors and Counting, Pallotta and Bersani take
readers on a tour of the world's butterflies, while encouraging
their counting skills. Counting up to 25, Pallotta packs a notable
amount of material into the book, detailing aspects of butterfly
anatomy, behavior, development, and more (readers also learn how to
say "butterfly" in two dozen languages, including Swahili, Tagalog,
and sign language). Bersani's detailed, naturalistic illustrations
and Pallotta's reader-directed questions ("If you were the first
person to find this butterfly, what would you call it?") ought to
have readers intrigued by Amethyst Hairstreaks, Blue Triangles, and
other colorful varieties of butterflies.
-Publishers Weekly
A beautifully illustrated book that can be enjoyed by a wide range
of readers. Beginning with zero and going up to 25, this colorful
counting book explores the beauty and diversity of butterflies. The
text provides rich vocabulary words, and students are able to use
context clues to determine meaning. Bold colors capture readers'
attention as various types of butterflies flutter in a counters
'paradise. The author explains how to say butterfly in a different
language on each page ("In the Hebrew language, a parpar is a
butterfly. In Spanish, a butterfly is called a mariposa."). On the
science end, readers learn interesting facts about butterflies,
such as how they camouflage themselves and how they use their feet
to taste. This book is a fun and exciting way to learn about
butterflies and reinforce counting skills. VERDICT A solid concept
book with eye-catching artwork.
-School Library Journal Technically, this is a counting book, but
it's a vibrant, detailed offering. Beginning with zero (a deprived
penguin, in Antarctica, that will likely never have the opportunity
to see a butterfly) and progressing up to 25, each page asks
readers to count ever-increasing numbers of moths and butterflies.
Eye-catching, realistic colored-pencil illustrations emphasizing
unique colors and markings align with pithy text describing
interesting life-cycle facts and tidbits of trivia, such as "The
color and design on the top size of butterfly wings is almost
always completely different than the underside" and "The word for
butterfly poop is 'frass.'" Each entry also provides the word for
butterfly in a different language, including sign language. Young
readers will likely enjoy counting the crisp, vivid drawings as
well as attempting to pronounce the foreign words, such as
borboleta, pulelehua, and rama-rama, among others, while older
readres might appreciate the lively commentary. This is an
attractive addition to counting books and will likely resonate with
fans of Elisa Kleven's Glasswings (2013).
-Booklist
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