My Happy Year by E. Bluebird (Nature Diary #2)

by Paul Meisel (Author)

Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade
Series: Nature Diary

With humor and charm, a bluebird narrates her first year of life--adventures, joys, and scary times too--in this companion book to My Awesome Summer by P. Mantis.

"May 1. Today is my birthday." So begins the wondrous first year of E. Bluebird.

Readers are treated to the intimate details of her life such as "May 8: Eating all these bugs makes me poop. Mom takes my poop sack out of the nest. Good thing." And "May 12: My brothers and sisters are getting ready to leave the nest. I like it here. It's safe." On May 18: "Where's my family? I'm getting hungry. Okay. This is it! I jump! I flap! I'm flying!" She eventually migrates south, and when she returns north, she finds a mate and has a family of her own. What a happy year!

The art is both beautiful and kid-friendly and has been vetted for accuracy by two experts. 

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ALA/Booklist

Like its companion book, My Awesome Summer, by P. Mantis (2017), this volume is called A Nature Diary. In dated entries, a bluebird records her experiences during her first year. . . . Created with acrylic ink and digitally enhanced, Meisel's handsome artwork shows a strong sense of color and form in depicting the natural world. The larger scenes are particularly striking. In the text, a simply written narrative traces the bluebird's growth from chick to mother bird, while illustrated notes offer additional facts. A clearly presented, informative introduction to a bird's life cycle.

Kirkus

Again relying on his own backyard observations as well as credited experts, Meisel offers a follow-up to his much-admired My Awesome Summer, by P. Mantis (2017). This description of a bluebird's life is straightforward in its content but versatile in its presentation. . . For fledgling readers, another appreciation of the natural world.

None

An Eastern Bluebird narrates a chipper account of her first year, from blind and helpless hatchling to fearful fledgling to full-grown adult . . . with a brief, friendly journal-style text accompanied by equally uncluttered and appealing digitally enhanced paintings in sumptuous colors. Both text and art provide a close-up look at the bird's growth, behaviors (including seasonal migration), diet, threats, and habitat. The illustrated front and back endpapers are filled with more detailed information about the species, a migration/habitat map, a glossary, information on how to build a bluebird house, and suggested websites.

Publishers Weekly

An eastern bluebird narrates the second installment of Meisel's A Nature Diary series. Born in a nesting box, E. Bluebird's anthropomorphic musings relate the milestones of her first year, from hatching and fledging to migrating and mating. As in My Awesome Summer by P. Mantis, the animal at the center of this life cycle story keeps her dated entries short and sweet. "September 28: I see a flock of Bluebirds. We're going south! I catch up with my family just in time." Close-ups of the narrator as a chick, squawking hungrily and sleeping with her siblings, give way to ground-up or bird's-eye views as flocks head out for the winter. The dynamic illustrations, rendered in digitally enhanced acrylics, imagine the simple tale in rich colors: a field of orange pumpkins precedes a gray sky full of migrating bluebirds, which segues into scenes featuring the tropical greenery (and predators!) of E. Bluebird's winter home. A fact-filled introduction and a concluding glossary and resource list offer plenty of detailed information for ornithologically inclined readers. Ages 4-8. Agent: Jennifer Mattson, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (Mar.)

Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

School Library Journal

Gr 2-4--It is E. Bluebird's birthday! E. is an Eastern Bluebird, and this story takes readers through a year in her life beginning at day one. When E. and her siblings hatch, they cannot see and must rely on their mother for food. As they grow, their eyesight improves and they begin to grow feathers, and eventually become more comfortable striking out on their own. Will E. be brave enough to leave the nest in time for her family's great migration? Short sentences, large text, and bright, vivid illustrations engage readers, whether bluebirds are familiar to them or not. Though it is nonfiction, the work reads as fiction for an early reader due to the design, word choice, and sentence length. A spread at the beginning provides more detailed information about bluebirds and serves to introduce children to the real animals upon which this story is based. VERDICT An excellent addition to library nonfiction sections that provides an enjoyable option for emerging readers who prefer reading more factual literature.--Mary Lanni, Denver Public Library

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes




Paul Meisel
Paul Meisel, who holds a master's degree in graphic design from Yale University, has received two Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Awards as well as American Library Association Notable Awards for See Me Run and I See a Cat, both I Like to Read books. My Awesome Summer by P. Mantis was honored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science for Excellence in Science Books, and The Schmutzy Family, written by Marilyn Rosenberg and illustrated by Paul Meisel, was a National Jewish Book Award Finalist.
Classification
-
ISBN-13
9780823446780
Lexile Measure
610
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Holiday House
Publication date
March 24, 2020
Series
Nature Diary
BISAC categories
JNF003030 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Animals | Birds
Library of Congress categories
Bluebirds
Eastern bluebird

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