Awesome Autumn: All Kinds of Fall Facts and Fun

by Bruce Goldstone, Bruce Goldstone (Photographer)

Overview

What is autumn all about? This comprehensive celebration of all things autumn will show you!

Autumn is awesome! Leaves change color. Animals fly south or get ready to hibernate. People harvest crops and dress up as scary creatures for Halloween. And then there are pickup football games to play, Thanksgiving foods to eat, leaf piles to jump in—all the amazing things that happen as the air turns crisp and cool.

With colorful photographs, lively explanations, and classic craft ideas, Bruce Goldstone's Awesome Autumn has created a festive and fascinating exploration of autumn's awesomeness.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780805092103
Publisher:	Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
Publication date:	08/07/2012
Series:	Season Facts and Fun
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	48
Sales rank:	968,086
Product dimensions:	8.80(w) x 11.20(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	AD690L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Bruce Goldstone splits his time between two hemispheres, so he often enjoys two autumns a year, the first in May in Buenos Aires and the second in October in New York City. With over twenty years of experience in educational publishing, he knows school curriculums well. His many books include the critically acclaimed Great Estimations, Greater Estimations, and 100 Ways to Celebrate 100 Days.

Editorial Reviews

Goldstone (100 Ways to Celebrate 100 Days) delivers a thorough overview of the season of autumn and what it entails in terms of the environment and weather, plants and animals, and human traditions and experiences. A chunky, informal font announces what each page is about (“Leaves change color. Why do leaves change?”), with detailed information unspooling in a smaller typeface (“As days get shorter, leaves stop producing chlorophyll. The trees don’t need it anymore”). Photographs of fall trees, animals, clothing, and activities appear throughout, often appearing within leaf-shaped silhouettes. Several spreads dedicated to hearing, taste, and touch encourage kids to actively embrace the season with all their senses, and a list of fall activities carries that idea through to the end. Ages 4–8. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

PreS-Gr 3—This book holds all kinds of information, from what to wear in the fall, what grows at that time of year, and even migration. Beautiful photos are balanced with relatively short bursts of text that young children will find manageable. The discussion of days getting shorter and nights getting longer is followed by how this change affects the production of chlorophyll and how it ultimately results in leaves falling from trees. There is a strong logic in the presentation of the facts that aids in the understanding of the concepts presented. When the migration of birds is discussed, the author brings in the migration of whales and dolphins, insects, and even elk, as they travel from higher elevations to lower ones. What about the ones who stay behind? They hibernate or grow long coats to keep warm as winter approaches. The format is somewhat busy but the book will do well in the laps of or on the desks of the children who are reading it. Both Halloween and Thanksgiving are covered, which then leads into winter. Consider pairing this title with Lois Ehlert's Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf (1991) and Leaf Man (2004, both Harcourt), and Julia Rawlinson's Fletcher and the Falling Leaves (HarperCollins, 2006), all of which explore aspects of fall but in fictional narratives. Awesome Autumn could easily answer any questions that come up when reading them. This is a good reference book for young scholars who will love both the photos and the fun facts.—Joan Kindig, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA

School Library Journal

Goldstone departs from his usual math picture books to deliver one of the most comprehensive books about autumn available for kids. Revolving around the idea that "Autumn is a season of awesome changes," the text takes readers through some of them: Days get colder and shorter; frost forms; farmers harvest their crops; some animals migrate, hibernate, change color or get ready for the cold in other ways; people play soccer and football, rake leaves and celebrate Halloween and Thanksgiving. Sometimes-lengthy paragraphs with vocabulary defined in the text inform readers; the best ones introduce the process of leaves changing color and separating from the tree. Goldstone seamlessly intersperses pages into this discussion that talk about the tastes, sounds, sights, textures and shapes of fall, making this a solid choice for audiences of mixed ages. One- and two-page spreads, as well as collages and vignettes of beautiful photos, evoke fall. Many of the photos are cropped in the shape of leaves or words, as on the sound-sense page--"Hooray" is cut from a photo of fans in a stadium. The final few spreads give photographs of and directions for some fall crafts, including gourd geese, leaf rubbings, roasted pumpkin seeds and a fall mobile. Wonderfully apropos pictures, solid information and sheer breadth are sure to make this an elementary-classroom staple. The cover blurb says it all: "All kinds of fall facts and fun." (Nonfiction. 5-10)

Kirkus Reviews

One of the most comprehensive books about autumn available for kids. . . . A solid choice for audiences of mixed ages. . . . Wonderfully apropos pictures, solid information and sheer breadth are sure to make this an elementary-classroom staple.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Goldstone delivers a thorough overview of the season of autumn and what it entails in terms of the environment and weather, plants and animals, and human traditions and experiences. . . . Encourage[s] kids to actively embrace the season with all their senses, and a list of fall activities carries that idea through to the end.” —Publishers Weekly

“Will do well in the laps of or on the desks of the children who are reading it. . . . This is a good reference book for young scholars who will love both the photos and the fun facts.” —School Library Journal

“Goldstone offers a richly varied view of autumn . . . which is sure to be popular with classroom teachers.” —Booklist

“[Awesome Autumn] uses gorgeous photography to show little ones all that happens during autumn. . . . The book touches on all the aspects of fall without being overwhelming for a young child, but full of enough information that an older child, or even an adult, can learn something new.” —PW ShelfTalker

“This accessible introduction to autumn features a wealth of interesting tidbits about the season in vivid photo-dense pages. . . . This visually and narratively engaging exploration of the season offers the perfect jumpstart for autumnal studies in the classroom or library.” —BCCB

“[An] attractive guide to fall, which is sure to be popular with classroom teachers.” —Booklist

“A more clever collection of 100 ideas is hard to imagine. A must-have for schools celebrating this special day.” —School Library Journal on 100 Ways to Celebrate 100 Days

“With an appealing layout that lends itself equally well to browsing or curriculum support, this lively book would be an excellent addition.” —School Library Journal on Greater Estimations

“A model of how to do it right.” —The New York Times Book Review on Great Estimations

From the Publisher