Puffling Patrol

by Ted Lewin, Betsy Lewin, Ted Lewin (Illustrator), Betsy Lewin (Illustrator)

Overview

Ted and Betsy Lewin travel to Iceland to learn about the "Puffling Patrol," a group of children who rescue lost puffins and return them to sea.

Every April, the Westman Islands off the coast of Iceland become home to hundreds of thousands of puffins, small black-and-white seabirds with colorful bills. They spend the summer on the rocky cliffs of the islands, caring for their newly hatched chicks. By the middle of August, it is time for the young puffins, called pufflings, to make their way to the sea. And that is when the children of The Puffling Patrol are called to action.

Ted and Betsy Lewin have journeyed to the Westman Islands to experience The Puffling Patrol's endeavors firsthand. In the company of Erna, Dáni, and their father, they drive through town at night, carefully searching for confused little birds that have glided down onto the streets instead of out to sea. Will the children find the pufflings before the birds encounter danger? Will the pufflings ever make it to the sea to spend their lives with other puffins in the North Atlantic Ocean?

The fascinating story of this unique annual rescue, combined with Ted Lewin's dramatic paintings and Betsy Lewin's lively field sketches, is sure to make Puffling Patrol a hit with animal lovers of all ages.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781620141878
Publisher:	Lee & Low Books
Publication date:	03/01/2012
Series:	Adventures Around the World
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	8.30(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	910L (what's this?)
Age Range:	6 - 11 Years

About the Author

Ted Lewin and his wife, Betsy, have been traveling the world together for decades and have chronicled many of their wide-ranging adventures in books for young readers. In addition to Puffling Patrol, their most recent collaborations were Balarama: A Royal Elephant and Horse Song: The Naadam of Mongolia, both published by Lee & Low Books. Ted and Betsy have both won countless awards and honors for their books. Ted was awarded a Caldecott Medal Honor in 1994 for Peppe the Lamplighter. When not teaching, visiting with young fans, or traveling, the Lewins are usually drawing and painting in their Brooklyn, New York, home studios. You can visit Ted Lewin online at tedlewin.com

Betsy Lewin and her husband, Ted, have been traveling the world together for decades and have chronicled many of their wide-ranging adventures in books for young readers. In addition to Puffling Patrol, their most recent collaborations were Balarama: A Royal Elephant and Horse Song: The Naadam of Mongolia, both published by Lee & Low Books. Ted and Betsy have both won countless awards and honors for their books. Betsy was the recipient of a Caldecott Medal Honor in 2001 for Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type. When not teaching, visiting with young fans, or traveling, the Lewins are usually drawing and painting in their Brooklyn, New York, home studios. You can visit Betsy Lewin online at betsylewin.com

Ted Lewin and his wife, Betsy, have been traveling the world together for decades and have chronicled many of their wide-ranging adventures in books for young readers. In addition to Puffling Patrol, their most recent collaborations were Balarama: A Royal Elephant and Horse Song: The Naadam of Mongolia, both published by Lee & Low Books. Ted and Betsy have both won countless awards and honors for their books. Ted was awarded a Caldecott Medal Honor in 1994 for Peppe the Lamplighter. When not teaching, visiting with young fans, or traveling, the Lewins are usually drawing and painting in their Brooklyn, New York, home studios. You can visit Ted Lewin online at tedlewin.com

Betsy Lewin and her husband, Ted, have been traveling the world together for decades and have chronicled many of their wide-ranging adventures in books for young readers. In addition to Puffling Patrol, their most recent collaborations were Balarama: A Royal Elephant and Horse Song: The Naadam of Mongolia, both published by Lee & Low Books. Ted and Betsy have both won countless awards and honors for their books. Betsy was the recipient of a Caldecott Medal Honor in 2001 for Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type. When not teaching, visiting with young fans, or traveling, the Lewins are usually drawing and painting in their Brooklyn, New York, home studios. You can visit Betsy Lewin online at betsylewin.com

Editorial Reviews

"With their usual skilled attention to detail and empathy for animal life, the Lewins take readers to the island of Heimaey off the southern coast of Iceland... The Lewins have previously visited and written about elephants in Botswana and India, gorillas in Uganda and horses in Mongolia; this latest travelogue is as informative and attractive. Bird and animal lovers will enjoy this journey to a remote but welcoming locale." — Kirkus Reviews

"Ted Lewin is a master at depicting light and shadow, and his majestic watercolor paintings effectively display the windswept vistas in cool blues and greens and indoor and nighttime scenes in warmer tones... Handsomely designed, this inherently engaging story sends an important message about the difference the island children make in helping save just one precious puffling." — School Library Journal

Best Children's Books of the Year Outstanding - Bank Street College of Education
CCBC Choices - Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
Green Earth Book Award Honor - The Nature Generation
Outstanding Children's Book Award Finalist - Animal Behavior Society
United Women in Faith Reading Program - United Methodist Women

From the Publisher

Gr 2–5—The Lewins are on the road again, this time traveling to the isolated island of Heimaey, just off the coast of Iceland, that is home to about 4300 people and one of the largest puffin populations in the world. They are here to chronicle the annual ritual of the rescue of young puffins that become disoriented during their maiden flight to sea and instead land in town, unable to escape without assistance. The first third of the book offers good background information, but reads like an adult travelogue: "From our airplane window we see the mist-shrouded Westman Islands…." The child-centered drama kicks in when the text turns its focus on eight-year-old twins Dáni and Erna, part of the puffling patrol that rescues the young birds and then releases them. Ted Lewin is a master at depicting light and shadow, and his majestic watercolor paintings effectively display the windswept vistas in cool blues and greens and indoor and nighttime scenes in warmer tones. His concluding sequence of spreads of the pufflings' successful release is breathtaking. These larger vistas work harmoniously with Betsy Lewin's more informal, loosely composed pen-and-ink field sketches that fluidly capture the antics of the comical seabirds. Handsomely designed, this inherently engaging story sends an important message about the difference the island children make in helping save just one precious puffling. It covers the same rescue introduced in Bruce McMillan's appealing Nights of the Pufflings (Houghton, 1995), with more background information on the island, its volcanic activity, and the current plight of the pufflings (there has been a decrease in sand eels, their main source of food). A comprehensive glossary and pronunciation guide to the Icelandic words round out a handsome package.—Caroline Ward, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT

School Library Journal

The intrepid husband-and-wife team's latest travels take them to Iceland to report on the plight of puffins. With their usual skilled attention to detail and empathy for animal life, the Lewins take readers to the island of Heimaey off the southern coast of Iceland. There, they recount the annual rescue of baby puffins by children of the Puffling Patrol. The young birds are often confused by street lights in the small town and must be rescued and returned to the shore. Focusing on brother-and-sister twins in one Icelandic family, the Lewins provide fascinating information on the adorable birds and the special attention they receive. Whether sheltered in a box or held carefully in the children's hands, the pufflings are irresistible. The lush watercolor paintings and detailed pen-and-ink sketches draw readers into this remote land and provide many charming close-up views of the colorful seabirds. Like animal life all over, puffins are threatened by global warming, and fewer and fewer numbers are recorded each year, making the twins' efforts feel all the more urgent. The Lewins have previously visited and written about elephants in Botswana and India, gorillas in Uganda and horses in Mongolia; this latest travelogue is as informative and attractive. Bird and animal lovers will enjoy this journey to a remote but welcoming locale. (additional information, resources, glossary and pronunciation guide) (Informational picture book. 6-10)

Kirkus Reviews