Vulture Verses: Love Poems for the Unloved

by Diane Lang, Lauren Gallegos (Illustrator)

Overview

When it comes to animals, the fluffy, the handsome, and the strong get all the attention. But children have every reason to love the critters that scuttle, slither, buzz, and sting. Through lively, witty rhymes and warm, friendly illustrations, naturalist and author Diane Lang and artist Lauren Gallegos take children on a guided tour of the animals that do so many good things for us, yet don’t get enough love, from skunks to vampire bats. Published fall of 2012, it has proved a big hit at nature centers, children’s museums, and schools.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780983459460
Publisher:	Prospect Park Books
Publication date:	09/01/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	19 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Diane Lang: Diane Lang is an effervescent naturalist who leads children's programs at three wildlife centers in California: Eaton Canyon in Southern California and Lindsay Wildlife Museum and Sulfur Creek Nature Center in Northern California.

Lauren Gallegos: Lauren Gallegos earned a BFA in illustration from California State Universityat Fullerton. She has illustrated several children's books.

Read an Excerpt

They scuttle, slither, buzz, and crawl;

They get no praise or love at all,

But is there someone who will send

A note that says, "You have a friend”?

Editorial Reviews

The sincerity in these versified valentines to 13 often-reviled animals may ring true, but the natural history doesn't always pass muster. Following a strong opener--"Turkey vulture, please be mine, / Not because you soar so fine, / But 'cause you rock on clean-up crew; / No rot is left when you are through"--the quality of the informational content takes a sharp nose dive. There are arguable claims that moles and opossums do no damage to gardens and that flies and cockroaches should be considered helpful recyclers of dead matter, as well as the befuddling, apparently rhyme-driven assertion that moths (not as caterpillars but in their flying, adult stage) are pests that "dine on fields of grain." Dubbing these and other subjects from skunks and vampire bats to mosquitoes and snakes "secret friends," Lang closes with an invitation to readers to compose similar love notes to "someone who is misunderstood." In oval or unbordered natural settings, Gallegos renders each creature with reasonable accuracy, though sometimes with a smile or oversized eyes for extra visual appeal. Well meant, but not very well researched. (Picture book/poetry. 7-9)

Kirkus Reviews