Bring the story of Noah's Ark to life with this Caldecott Honor winning book. The tale may be familiar, but the pictures bring it to life for children. The pictures are beautiful watercolor paintings with many colors, shading, and fine detail that your little one will want to stare at. On the opening page alone - before the story has even begun - you will find an elephant and a brontosaurus hidden in the thick green of an island, while a huge mountain reaches into the clouds. The sun's rays shoot deep into the ocean, where a giant blue-grey whale is basking in it. Seagulls look on from above, and multi-colored coral rests below. The sky also reveals the night, complete with a moon and stars. The pictures are full of contrast and depth. The first page of the story depicts vibrant blue and red flowers in the foreground with a spider web detailed between them, while a white town burns in the background, drowning in the black smoke rolling over and out of it.

The pictures with all the animals pairs that are preparing to go onto the ark is a great way to engage younger children, by asking them to name the different animals they see, or naming them together. There is a great lesson about working together in this story, which you can use to discuss how each one applies to their life. The lesson is demonstrated when Noah's family helps him prepare the ark; "Noah filled baskets with grain. His wife baked loaves of bread. His three sons gathered grapes and olives. His son's wives  poured water into jars and carried them to the ark . . ."

 

My sister-in-law read this book to my niece when Emily was four years-old. Emily was fascinated by the pictures, but particularly liked the one of the ark being built. There was so much detail (the beams, supports, ladders, workers, ropes, etc.) that she liked to look at those pages slowly, starting in the upper left corner and moving down as though she were 'reading' the picture.

 

--Audra