One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree

by Daniel Bernstrom, Brendan Wenzel (Illustrator)

Overview

“A hungry snake. A beautiful brown boy. What more can a young reader ask for?”—National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson

A sneaky snake has no idea that the captives in his belly are planning their escape! In the spirit of There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by Simms Taback, the reader sees a cutaway of the snake’s belly and can even guess how the tale ends!

Classic and contemporary, timeless and fresh, One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree has a syncopated and rhythmically delightful text perfect for reading aloud. 

Daniel Bernstrom’s debut picture book is nothing short of splendid, and is accompanied by magical illustrations from New York Times bestselling and 2017 Caldecott Medal-winning artist Brendan Wenzel (They All Saw a Cat).

And don't miss Daniel Bernstrom’s next book, Gator, Gator, Gator!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062354853
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/03/2016
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	215,872
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Daniel Bernstrom is the author of the critically acclaimed One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree as well as Gator, Gator, Gator!, Big Papa and the Time Machine, Song in the City, and Good Night, Little Man. Dan earned an MFA in writing for children and young adults from Hamline University and currently works at the Learning Resource Center coordinator at Minnesota State College Southeast, where he tutors students in math, writing, and science. He lives in Red Wing, Minnesota, with his wife, Heather; daughter, LaVonne; and sons, Grace, and Haven.

Brendan Wenzel is an illustrator with a great affection for trees and all the furry, feathered, and scaly things that you can find in them (including snakes!). He has traveled to jungles, savannas, and everything in between in search of fascinating animals and has teamed up with many groups working to preserve wild places and creatures around the world. Brendan is the illustrator of Angela DiTerlizzi's Some Bugs. Brendan lives in New York with his wife, Magdalena.

Editorial Reviews

★ 02/29/2016
It’s never a good day to be eaten, but when a hungry snake swallows a brown-skinned boy in “the shade of the eucalyptus, eucalyptus tree,” the child doesn’t skip a beat. From inside the snake’s “belly dark and deep,” the boy cannily advises the snake to gorge away: “There is room, so much room./ Go ahead, please enjoy!” Down the hatch go wide-eyed critters big and small, each one proving once again that Wenzel (Beastly Babies) knows how to mix his media: there’s a luxuriously whiskered cat, a sloth with a sweaterlike coating of moss, “an ape eating grapes,/ lounging like a queen,” and a very big bear. Debut author Bernstrom eschews the usual rhythmic recapping common to cumulative tales, instead drawing in readers with lilting refrains and exuberant wordplay (“Up, up snaked the snake/ from his place in the leave,/ and gobbled up the bear/ with the qually-wally hair”). The book’s rhythms are perfectly suited to reading aloud—as is the enormous onomatopoeic regurgitation that sends the swallowed creatures back into the daylight. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Brenda Bowen, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. Illustrator’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Love the book. . . . A hungry snake. A beautiful brown boy. What more can a young reader ask for?” — National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson

“What fun Daniel Bernstrom has with words! Living as we do in a society where the emphasis is on television, film, and videos, this book shows children how delightful language can be. The wonderful and colorful illustrations add to the playful joy of this book.” — Newbery Honor winner Julius Lester

“Bernstrom’s spritely language rhythmically sings an exciting, laugh-filled, cumulative story. Bold, large print highlights the events as the snake slides, wiggles, and twists while the animals crinkle, munch, and buzz. Wenzel’s wildly imaginative, brightly hued digital illustrations are a wonderfully goofy complement to the action . . . — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Debut author Bernstrom draw(s) in readers with lilting refrains and exuberant wordplay. Wenzel knows how to mix his media: there’s a luxuriously whiskered cat, a sloth with a sweaterlike coating of moss, “an ape eating grapes,/ lounging like a queen,” and a very big bear.’ — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Onomatopoeia and action words abound, as does the rhythm and repetition, making this cumulative tale skip along. The rainbow eucalyptus tree, its leaves, and the fanciful mix of critters are depicted in marvelously colorful digital illustrations.” — Booklist (starred review)

“Children will enjoy the rhythms of the musical text and eagerly anticipate each new meal, reveling in the inevitable outcome. VERDICT Pair this title with any version of “There Was an Old Lady” for a satisfying storytime.-Barbara Auerbach, New York City Public Schools.” — School Library Journal

From the Publisher

What fun Daniel Bernstrom has with words! Living as we do in a society where the emphasis is on television, film, and videos, this book shows children how delightful language can be. The wonderful and colorful illustrations add to the playful joy of this book.

Newbery Honor winner Julius Lester

Onomatopoeia and action words abound, as does the rhythm and repetition, making this cumulative tale skip along. The rainbow eucalyptus tree, its leaves, and the fanciful mix of critters are depicted in marvelously colorful digital illustrations.

Booklist (starred review)

Love the book. . . . A hungry snake. A beautiful brown boy. What more can a young reader ask for?

National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson

What fun Daniel Bernstrom has with words! Living as we do in a society where the emphasis is on television, film, and videos, this book shows children how delightful language can be. The wonderful and colorful illustrations add to the playful joy of this book.

Newbury Honor winner Julius Lester

What fun Daniel Bernstrom has with words! Living as we do in a society where the emphasis is on television, film, and videos, this book shows children how delightful language can be. The wonderful and colorful illustrations add to the playful joy of this book.

Julius Lester

04/01/2016
PreS-Gr 2—"One day in the leaves/of the eucalyptus tree/hung a scare in the air/where no eye could see." A large yellow snake with purple forked tongue lies in wait for its next meal. Along comes a wide-eyed little boy, who gets gobbled right up. "'I'll bet,' said the boy,/in the belly dark and deep,/'that you're still very hungry/and there's more you can eat.'" And so, with the clever tyke's encouragement, the greedy predator proceeds to eat a bird with a worm, a cat, an ape eating grapes, a bear, a hive full of bees, and a fruit with a fly. "Gurgle-gurgle came a blurble/from that belly deep and full…" and out exit the animal's victims, leaving the regretful snake with a "crummy tummyache." The digitally created art features full spreads depicting the ever-inflating snake and its alarmed victims on the recto and the boy and the other victims cloaked in the darkness of the snake's belly on the verso. Children will enjoy the rhythms of the musical text and eagerly anticipate each new meal, reveling in the inevitable outcome. VERDICT Pair this title with any version of "There Was an Old Lady" for a satisfying storytime.—Barbara Auerbach, New York City Public Schools

School Library Journal

★ 2016-02-17
A dark-skinned "boy with a whirly-twirly toy" skips through the forest, unaware of the snake lurking in the eucalyptus tree. That sneaky snake gobbles up the boy and his toy. From deep inside "the belly dark and deep" the intrepid boy repeats a refrain suggesting that the snake is still hungry and should eat something else, as there is certainly more room in its tummy. Finding a plethora of animals in the double-named tree, the snake eats a bird with a worm and, encouraged further, proceeds to gobble a cat, a sloth, a bear, and an entire hive filled with bees. Finally, goaded by the boy, he swallows a small piece of fruit, complete with fly. The hugely engorged snake can hold no more and gurgles and belches out all the creatures it has swallowed, including the little boy, who goes merrily on his way with his toy, leaving the snake with a massive tummy ache. Bernstrom's spritely language rhythmically sings an exciting, laugh-filled, cumulative story. Bold, large print highlights the events as the snake slides, wiggles, and twists while the animals crinkle, munch, and buzz. Wenzel's wildly imaginative, brightly hued digital illustrations are a wonderfully goofy complement to the action, whether depicting the goings-on in the dark tummy or the creatures' idiosyncrasies and their bug-eyed surprise as they are consumed. Marvelous fun. (Picture book. 3-8)

Kirkus Reviews