189 Canaries

by Dieter Böge, Elsa Klever (Illustrator), Laura Watkinson (Translator)

Overview

In a cozy room in northern Germany, a yellow canary sings rolling melodies to the miners and carpenters of the Harz mountains. But today a bird dealer has come, and he will take the canary far, far away from everything he knows. The journey leads onto trains and steamships, across Europe and even the Atlantic. At last the canary arrives in a room in New York where he hears a strangely familiar song…

This beautiful, poignant book introduces readers to the little-known history of a beloved songbird. Lushly illustrated in rich colors, 189 Canaries is an unforgettable story about music, migration, and the search for home. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780802855749
Publisher:	Eerdmans, William B. Publishing Company
Publication date:	09/07/2021
Pages:	48
Product dimensions:	8.67(w) x 11.00(h) x (d)
Lexile:	1050L (what's this?)
Age Range:	6 - 10 Years

About the Author

Dieter Böge is a children's book author, painter, and translator. His books have been nominated for the German Youth Literature Award and selected for the International Youth Library's White Ravens catalog. 189 Canaries began when Dieter discovered a photo of 189 canvas-covered birdcages on a wooden rack, which made him curious about their story. Dieter lives in Germany. 189 Canaries is his English-language debut.
 



Elsa Klever is a German illustrator and fine artist whose books include Taxi Ride with Victor (Prestel Junior). She was the winner of the 2015 Austrian Children's Book Award and has been shortlisted twice for the World Illustration Awards. Visit her website at elsaklever.de or follow her on Instagram @elsaklever.


 
Laura Watkinson translates books for children and adults from Dutch, German, and Italian. Her translations have received numerous honors, including three Mildred L. Batchelder Awards and the Vondel Translation Prize. She is the founder of the Dutch chapter of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SBCWI). Laura lives in Amsterdam. Visit her website at laurawatkinson.com.

Editorial Reviews

06/14/2021

In this English-language debut by German author Böge, comprehensive prose in the third-person perspective closely follows the journey of one canary from the Harz Mountains; he works in a silver mine and sings at night until being sold to a bird dealer, who takes him on a journey across the Atlantic Ocean with 188 other canaries: “The light looks gray under the canvas cover. They can hear the gravel under the dealer’s boots.” Mixed-media illustrations by Klever are richly colored and have a fantastical, folkloric feel, following the gently expressive, bright yellow bird. While younger readers may find the dense paragraphs less appealing, older children partial to illustrated animal-centered fiction will find much to appreciate. Back matter includes detailed notes on the history of canaries. Ages 6–10. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Publishers Weekly
“Older children partial to illustrated animal-centered fiction will find much to appreciate.”

Kirkus Reviews
“A quiet story that savors the historical details of a bird’s trans-Atlantic journey.”

School Library Journal
“A delightful story of a little-known piece of history, with the added bonus of a fun math connection for students studying multiplication.”

The Horn Book Magazine
“The storytelling style uses the present tense to pull the reader directly into a faraway time and place. Böge’s narration is full of sensory details . . . that are particularly appropriate for a story about a bird prized for its voice. Klever’s mixed-media illustrations, with a muted color palette, have the flat perspective of folk art.

From the Publisher

09/01/2021

Gr 1–3—Lush illustrations and text full of sensory descriptions make this narrative nonfiction story of how canaries came to America a real pleasure to read and share with young readers. The story follows the journey of one canary from its mountain home in the Harz Mountains in Austria, where it accompanies silver miners during the day and sings its lovely tunes to a family at night. A bird dealer comes to take the canary, along with 188 others (189 referring to the number of small bird cages that will fit in layers of a large backpack) on a long journey on foot over the mountains, then to a train, then a ship headed across the Atlantic, and finally to a pet store in New York City, where the bird meets its new human family. Back matter includes a brief history of the birds, originally from the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa, a picture of the many varieties of the bird, as well as a map showing the route of the journey from Europe to North America. Human characters default to white; the vast majority of the illustrations depict the birds and imaginative drawings of the canary, the surroundings, and even the birdsong. VERDICT A delightful story of a little-known piece of history, with the added bonus of a fun math connection for students studying multiplication.—Sue Morgan, Hillsborough City Sch. Dist., Hillsborough, CA

School Library Journal

2021-06-16
The titular 189 canaries bring their unique songs from the mountains of Germany to bustling New York harbor.

High in the Harz Mountains of Germany, canaries are bred for use in the silver mines. Their ability to detect high levels of carbon monoxide alerts miners to escape the tunnels to reach fresh air. These canaries also learn to sing beautiful melodies unlike any other in the world. This story focuses on the journey of one canary who is placed in a tiny cage, strapped onto a large rack with 188 other tiny cages, each containing a single canary. Transported by foot, cart, train, and ocean liner, the feathered protagonist finally winds up in New York, where he is purchased by a little girl. Originally published in German, this historical picture book was created with the advice and support of the Harz Roller Museum in Germany. The third-person narration has a descriptive simplicity that ties together the canary’s observations with a zoomed-out view of the voyage. The linear storytelling is full of graceful imagery, often reflected in the illustrations. Using a folk art–meets-hipster style, the illustrations lean into a rich, warm color palette. Backmatter presents a short history of canaries in captivity, information on their ability to learn songs from one another, and the ways canaries were used and transported by humans in the 19th century. While the uniqueness of Harz Roller canaries is celebrated, quality of life for birds bred for captivity is never addressed. All human characters have pale skin.

A quiet story that savors the historical details of a bird’s trans-Atlantic journey. (Picture book. 6-9)

Kirkus Reviews