Iris Hiskey

Little Lila is a groundhog with a problem. It's winter, but she's not sleepy. Everyone else has already gone to bed. Lila wonders about what happens all winter long. She also wants to know about the secret of the first one up.

Uncle Wilber isn't telling, but he challenges Lila to be up earlier than anyone else. When Lila finally wakes up, she races Above Ground and finds all of the neighbor animals waiting for her. They all want to know if she sees it. Sees what? Lila looks around. What's the secret? Check out this charming tale about weather folklore to find out.

The Bottom Line: With notes about the tradition of Groundhog Day, this picture book is a gentle and fun read for kids in preschool to grade 2. The tale is engaging, and the pages are filled with lovely, soft illustrations in acrylic, colored pencil, and gouache. Enthusiastically recommended for storytime or bedtime reading.

This review also appears at the Mini Book Bytes Book Review Blog.… (más)

The Little Calf that Couldn’t Moo
By Iris Hiskey (1992)

I liked The Little Calf that Couldn’t Moo by Iris Hiskey for three reasons. First, I liked the introduction of animals and the sounds they make. For beginner readers this is beneficial because they learn to identify an animal by its sound. Second, I liked the introduction of basic numbers; for example, the five chickens, the four ducks, the three pigs, and so on. Positively, the numbers were shown in the photos; the photo on the first page had five chickens, and four ducks. Therefore, the child sees the number in the text, but can also count the actual objects in the photos. Lastly, I liked Iris Hiskey’s ability to demonstrate the theme that differences are not bad; for instance, cows are supposed to “moo,” but the baby cow or calf says, “ma”; the calf is different from the norm, but the Mama cow and farmer embrace his dissimilarity. Overall, the “big idea” of The Little Calf that Couldn’t Moo is to suggest that differences are acceptable, and that differences should not be denied, yet valued.… (más)