ABOUT THIS BOOK: AND THEN IT’S SPRING
by Julie Fogliano
As I sit wrapped in a blanket listening to the howling wind sending Minnesota temperatures to -40 degrees, I think that I should be writing about A Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. That classic story is about a little boy content to be outside in the snow all by himself, having a wonderful time. The setting of And Then It’s Spring moves to the very end of winter. This little boy is, also, content to be outside by himself. The only other characters accompanying him are his silent animal friends. Ms. Fogliano uses sparse poetic text with one continuous sentence to convey peace, anticipation, and hopefulness. A sample page:
“and the brown,
still brown, has a greenish hum
that you can only hear
if you put your ear to the ground
and close your eyes”
However, she teams with the great Erin Stead (a Practickle favorite for such books as: A Sick Day for Amos McGee) to produce a book with a strong message about hopefulness (as the seeds are planted) and patience (waiting for the seeds to sprout).
In the First Reading, as you study the detailed illustrations, look for the hints of spring. Look for humor in the little details of such things as the labels and the signs. Look at the expressions of the animals who never tire of accompanying the little boy.
This book is Ms. Fogliano’s first. She struggled for many years trying to get a good idea for her book. She says, “A friend suggested that I write him one thought a day for a year. There were no rules, except that I had to write at least one line a day for 365 days. And Then It’s Spring is Thought #156………It’s about learning to relate to nature. As the little boy is learning to relate to nature, he learns the importance of being quiet and in the present. It’s about looking and listening.”
The Reading Comprehension Best Practice that is highlighted in this book is Answering Questions During Reading. The primary question that you’ll ask is: What do the illustrations and text tell me about spring? Keep track of additional questions that arise from the illustrations that might be answered by the text during the Second Reading.
Hopefully when you read this book, spring will be coming to your area.