One North Star: A Counting Book

A cumulative tally of flora and fauna in Minnesota—the North Star State.

Bowen’s luminous painted woodcuts, based on designs by Prange, depict 10 northern biomes at sundry times of day and year. The residents of each are different, from an opening aerial glimpse of one moose browsing near a rocky Great Lakes beach followed by two brown bats in a limestone cave beneath one soaring rough-legged hawk to views of 10 teals, nine showy goldenrods, eight milkweed pods, seven Canada geese, and other sights common to a broad tallgrass prairie—all, as the refrain goes, “under one north star.” After a pointed reminder about one final resident—“You live here, too,” showing light-skinned figures at a campfire—Root closes with brief nature notes on the featured plants and animals, plus directions for finding Polaris in the night sky. Despite a patterned format, Root’s not-particularly-rhythmic text isn’t as sonically pleasing as her own Plant a Pocket of Prairie, also illustrated by Bowen (2014), or Donna M. Bateman’s Out on the Prairie, illustrated by Susan Swan (2012), but as befits the various settings, the wild cast is considerably more diverse.

"Who lives here/ under one north star?" asks this quiet homage to Minnesota's wildlife and ecosystems. Root (Snowy Sunday) uses a cumulative structure as she counts up to 10 but introduces new flora and fauna with each page turn: "Five walleyes fin near wild rice/ four blue flag irises flower/ three mudpuppies wriggle/ two loons call/ one porcupine sleeps in a jack pine tree/ all along a lake/ under one north star." Prange and Bowen combine rough-hewn woodcuts with bright watercolors to give a sense of bustling marshes, sweeping plains, and snow-covered forests. Thorough endnotes dive deeper into each of the habitats and the animals that call them home. Ages 3-up. (Aug.)

PreS-Gr 1--Turn the pages to play a counting game and find the flora and fauna in the Minnesota environs, namely, the lakes, bluffs woods, prairies, marshes, and bogs. The first one in this North Star state is easy to play, because it begins with one moose browsing "by a cobble beach." By the 10th spread, though nine practices preceded it, the challenge deepens to try to match 10 totally new plants and animals to the hints in the text. Young readers may not immediately identify goldenrods, milkweed pods, or soldier beetles, but Root's succinct descriptions work together with Prange and Bowen's black woodcut prints with watercolors, and all the clues are needed. The narrative leads to the poignant question, "Who else lives there?" There in the beautiful landscape are a parent and two children, representing the human inhabitants. All 55 plants and animals heretofore introduced are briefly described and pictured in the concluding spreads. Every page has a North Star reference. VERDICT Minnesota librarians should purchase multiple copies of this lovely interactive book. Others should follow suit, because most of the plants and animals can be found elsewhere.--Nancy Call, Santa Cruz Public Libraries, Aptos, CA

"A bright, populous countdown for nature lovers, Midwestern or otherwise." "Kirkus Reviews"

"Beautiful...one of the most elegant and appealing of the year." "Pioneer Press"

"An excellent choice for both young and middle-grade classroom libraries." "Foreword""