Seven Hungry Babies

May 10, 2010
Weary mothers will identify with the beleaguered heroine in this counting book far more than young readers will identify with Mama Bird's demanding children. "Feed us! Feed us!" the newly hatched babies screech, as Mama Bird showers them with mawkish endearments before flying off to find them food. "Of course, my precious cuddle fluffs," she coos. "Yes, yes, my noisy warble pies." Fleming (Imogene's Last Stand) ratchets up the careworn mother's tone to comic effect as Mama Bird becomes increasingly stressed and bedraggled, bringing back a minnow, a peapod, and other items for the babies, who drop off to sleep one by one. Yelchin's (Heart of a Snowman) humorous gouache paintings depict Mama Bird's increasing distress as she staggers back to the nest again and again, while simultaneously conveying the babies' insatiable urgency. Finally, when all seven yellow babies are asleep, Mama Bird sprawls out on a nearby branch to rest, but a page turn reveals the babies peeping again. " ‘Oh, no, not this time,' Mama chirps," as she deftly passes the buck: "It's Daddy's turn to fly." Ages 3–7.

February 1, 2010
PreS-Gr 1-In this bouncy, onomatopoeic tale, a mother bird coos as she flies hither and yon to bring back delicacies to feed her newly hatched chicks. With a "flappa-flap, swoop-swoop, zoom-zoom, YUM!" the increasingly frazzled mama shuttles back and forth, leaving one satisfied and sleeping chick each time, until the whole nestful is nappingbut wait, they're all awake and hungry again. In the satisfying conclusion, Mama turns to resting Daddy to take over the catering chores. Fleming's playful text features endearments that will tickle listeners ("precious cuddle fluffs"; "little egg-crackers") and a rhythm that sweeps the story along. The fresh gouache illustrations are awash in blues and white with fire-bright red and yellow birds and feature expressive faces on the avian stars. With unexpected perspectives as well as text that sometimes nestles, sometimes swoops across the page, this book is perfect for group storytimes and one-on-one reading."Marge Loch-Wouters, La Crosse Public Library, WI"

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2010
Preschool-G When seven hungry chicks cry for food, Mama Bird happily ventures into the dangerous world to retrieve a bit of nourishment. The bad news? That still leaves six hungry chicks. So out she goes again, this time for a cherry, then a bread crust. With each return, the unfed chicks get increasingly riled, while the harried mother gets increasingly exhausted. Though Flemings rhyming scheme is ambitious, its ironclad in its meter and well positioned upon the page. Young listeners will be chanting along almost immediately: Four hungry babies fret, sulk, and pout. Feed us! Feed us! the little ones shout. / Hush, you little egg-crackers, Mama Bird coos, and Ill fly to the garden to find you more food. The countdown element is irresistiblethe number of hungry chicks decreases right along with Mama Birds energy. Though the gouache art is a little plain, it humorously returns to the same composition for each round of feeding. Just the thing to turn a large-group read-aloud into a frenzied chicken coop.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)