Wendy Hartmann

Wow this book. Hartmann links the noises of the biological landscape of Africa and related it to the traditional music found there. It is in verse and is so natural and rhythmic which mirrors its content so well. Rankin uses water color and pen to display detailed-when-necessary images. She has clearly done her research in African art and incorporates the distinct patterning into animals, trees, and clothing. Hartmann is obviously well versed in her content as well, referencing specific species, biological phenomenon, and musical instruments. She is a South African author who is clearly passionate about providing information in a beautiful way. I am not usually a fan of books written in rhyme but it definitely works here. It was published in 2017 but I cannot believe there are no other reviews on here about this book! Great read!… (más)

I chose this book for its African setting. The book focuses on the sun rising over Africa and things certain animals do during the day and night hours. Being a counting book, it starts counting up to ten beginning with “One sun rises over Africa”. There is a break in the book, a page with no words, only a dark night in Africa. The book then begins to count back from 10 to 1, “One sun rises over Africa.” I thought the concept was pretty cool being that it shows how the same sun rises over Africa as a whole. The images were vibrant and showed life of Africa’s animals. This book could be used in a class young as Kinder-garden. The images are easy enough to count aloud while reading, and children are able to follow along.… (más)