Dot & Jabber and the Great Acorn Mystery

by Ellen Stoll Walsh, Ellen Stoll Walsh (Illustrator)

Overview

Dot and Jabber are mouse detectives with case to crack—if Jabber doesn’t eat the clues first! They’re determined to find out how a little oak tree grew in their field when there are no other oak trees around. They know it grew from an acorn, but how did the acorn get there?
     Full of curiosity and humor, Dot and Jabber track clues to solve a science mystery in this newly formatted Green Light Reader by Ellen Stoll Walsh, creator Mouse Paint. An afterword presents easy-to-understand facts about acorns and oak trees.
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780544791657
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	09/13/2016
Series:	Dot & Jabber
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.70(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Ellen Stoll Walsh is the author-illustrator of many popular books for children, including the successful Mouse Paint and Mouse Count books. She lives in upstate New York.

Ellen Stoll Walsh is the author-illustrator of many popular books for children, including the successful Mouse Paint and Mouse Count books. She lives in upstate New York.

Editorial Reviews

"Dot and Jabber are the perfect mice to lead young readers in exploring the great outdoors."  — Kirkus Reviews "A good choice for all collections." — School Library Journal "Walsh's familiar cut-paper collages present a simple cycle of life that most young children can easily grasp, and  her graceful creatures transform the science lessons into something fun, thoughtful, and very special."  —Booklist —

From the Publisher

Walsh's (Mouse Paint; Mouse Count) mice characters here deliver a somewhat disjointed nature lesson. Spying a young oak tree, "detectives" Dot and Jabber set out to find the larger oak that produced the acorn that sprouted into the smaller tree. After a mole points them in the right direction, the duo wonders how the acorn traveled from the bigger tree to the location of the newer tree. ("Do you think it walked?" asks Jabber). Reaching the large oak, they discover their unexpected answer (they observe a squirrel making off with a newly fallen acorn and burying it in the ground). A concluding note explains alternative ways in which acorns travel from place to place (moved by water, birds or people). More distinctive than the narrative, Walsh's spare, cut-paper collage art has a three-dimensional look and gives these inquisitive mice an appealing, comical quality. Ages 3-7. (Sept.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

PreS-Gr 1-Dot and Jabber, two mouse detectives, "need a mystery to solve," so they try to figure out how an acorn arrived at the spot where a little oak tree is growing as there are no other oak trees in sight. They approach their investigation with the calm intensity only older readers will connect with Dragnet. As they pursue the facts, they observe that oak trees grow from acorns, acorns from oak trees, there is a large oak across the meadow, and squirrels transport and bury acorns. While the evidence is circumstantial, it is good enough for the furry twosome. They snack on extra acorns and look forward to the next mystery. The variety and texture of the materials used in the earth-tone illustrations are superb. The eight-inch square size is large enough to share with a tidy group while quite manageable for small hands. Walsh has some sturdy laurels to rest on after Mouse Paint (1989), Mouse Count (1991), and Mouse Magic (2000, all Harcourt), but these mouse detectives can stand on their own. Scientific tidbits are included on the last page to enlighten the curious. Gentle enough for pre-nap or bedtime but engaging enough for any time, this well-written, visually pleasing picture book is a good choice for all collections.-Jody McCoy, The Bush School, Seattle, WA Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

More of Walsh's ("Mouse Magic", 2000, etc.) mice have arrived on the scene to delight and teach young readers. Dot and Jabber are detectives in search of a mystery, and they find it in a little oak tree. While Dot wonders how the acorn got so far from the big oak tree, Jabber wonders what an acorn is. As the two mice learn and investigate together, they test hypotheses of how the acorn traveled and fight the urge to eat the clues they find. And in the end, the detectives always get their man, er, squirrel. Budding young naturalists will appreciate the additional information on acorns and oak trees that follows the story. Walsh's cut-paper pictures echo the topic, with their textures and inclusions of fibers showing through and marvelously portraying the natural world. Dot and Jabber are the perfect mice to lead young readers in exploring the great outdoors. "(Picture book. 3-7)"

Kirkus Reviews