Loon Baby

PreS-K—Griffin follows a baby loon as he swims with his mother to the middle of a little round lake in the great north woods. Mama dives for his dinner and disappears under the waves while Loon Baby, who cannot dive yet, waits impatiently above. He tries unsuccessfully to join her, then heads toward home, but cannot find their nest. Finally, cold, hungry, and afraid, he does what any young child would do. His loud, distinctive cries alert his mother, who returns with his dinner; then he happily dives "deep under the rippling waves" with Mama behind "and together they kick-flipped through the green lake-light, all the way home...." Hunter's heavily cross-hatched watercolor panoramas of the northern wilderness show various animals indigenous to the area—snapping turtle, great blue heron, brown bear, moose, great horned owl, beaver, bullfrog—in a carefully crafted folk-art style. Brief, large text and artwork blend nicely. This gentle story of a young bird's fears of being abandoned by an out-of-sight parent offers reassurance to children in a similar situation.—Susan Scheps, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH