You Nest Here with Me

by Jane Yolen (Author) Melissa Sweet (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

With rhyming text, this soothing bedtime book is an ode to baby birds everywhere and sleepy children home safe in their own beds.

As a mother describes to her child how many species of birds nest, from pigeons on concrete ledges to owls in oak tree boles to swallows above barn doors. The soothing refrain of "you nest here with me" eases her little one and readers alike to slumber.

Combining their poetic writing and their love of birding, mother and daughter Jane Yolen and Heidi Stemple have written what is sure to become a bedtime classic.

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Paperback
$9.99

ALA/Booklist

Starred Review
 This delights the eye, mind and heart. 

Publishers Weekly


Frequent mother-daughter collaborators Yolen and Stemple, whose previous books include Not All Princesses Dress in Pink, offer a gentle rhyming bedtime story that spotlights 14 birds' nesting habits and habitats. At bedtime, a human mother lulls her own "nestling" to sleep with verses that flit from bird to bird, before concluding with a reassuring refrain: "Pigeons nest on concrete ledges,/ Catbirds nest in greening hedges,/ Tiny wrens, in shoreline sedges./ You nest here with me." Caldecott Honor artist Sweet's (A River of Words) mixed-media illustrations portray familiar types of birds (pigeons, swallows, owls) alongside lesser-known killdeer, grackles, and coots, capturing their urban, seaside, wetland, or forest environs in bright swaths of watercolor paint and soft pencils. Some vocabulary (boles, tors) and observations ("Killdeer, once their eggs are laid,/ Perform a broken-wing charade") invite further investigation; concluding notes provide explanatory details ("To lure predators away from their eggs, killdeer act like easy prey by faking a broken wing") and other information about each bird. A well-crafted and informative window onto the world of winged creatures. Ages 4-8. (Mar.)

Copyright 2015 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

School Library Journal

PreS-K—As she puts her daughter to bed, a mother shares a soothing rhyme about birds that nest in places far and near. Each rhymed triplet is followed by the repeated assurance: "But you nest here with me." Sweet's watercolor and gouache landscapes reveal adult birds watching over nestlings. Coots hide in cozy cattail reeds; terns wheel above cliffs; plovers explore sandy shores. Each vista includes many details for viewers to ponder. Older listeners (or adult readers) can find additional information about the featured birds in two pages of authors' notes, which encourage prospective bird watchers. However, the book probably will be read most often as a comforting prelude to sleep. VERDICT A worthwhile purchase for collections that need new selections for bedtime sharing.—Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University Library, Mankato

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Kirkus

As a whole, the book ably carries readers past many flying friends and lands with ease in a safe nest. 

Review quotes

* Do we need another good night book? The answer is unequivocally yes. . . . This delights the eye, mind and heart. -Booklist, starred review

With an easy cadence and a comforting anchor, Yolen and Stemple drift from cowbird to killdeer, bedding down winged creatures while always returning to the safety of mom and home. . . . The text and the images work well together, balancing the mood of quiet comfort with avian description. . . . As a whole, the book ably carries readers past many flying friends and lands with ease in a safe nest. -Kirkus Reviews
Jane Yolen
Jane Yolen has received numerous awards for her writing, including the Golden Kite Award, two Christopher Medals, and both the Kerlan Award from the University of Minnesota and the Regina Medal for her body of work. She has four other books scheduled for Spring 2013: a middle grade novel, a graphic novel, a nonfiction picture book, and a poetry book for the very young. She lives in Hatfield, Massachusetts, and St. Andrews, Scotland.

Rebecca Kai Dotlich is the author of more than a dozen poetry and picture books, including When Riddles Come Rumbling and Lemonade Sun. She gives presentations and poetry workshops to students, teachers, librarians, and writers across the country. She lives near Indianapolis, Indiana.

Matt Mahurin is the illustrator of My Beautiful Child by Lisa Desimini. He is also a photographer, whose work is in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and a filmmaker, who has made over 100 music videos and three feature films. He lives in Northport, NY.
Classification
-
ISBN-13
9781662620430
Lexile Measure
540
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Astra Young Readers
Publication date
July 25, 2023
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV002040 - Juvenile Fiction | Animals | Birds
JUV010000 - Juvenile Fiction | Bedtime & Dreams
JUV013000 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | General
Library of Congress categories
Birds
Bedtime
Stories in rhyme
Nests

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