We Were There: A Nativity Story

by Eve Bunting

Overview

On a winter night long ago, a baby boy was born in a stable with only the animals to witness his arrival. But it wasn't just the cows and donkeys and soft little lambs who were present. Smaller, less loved creatures were there, too: the snake, the scorpion, the cockroach, and others.

Lyrically written by Eve Bunting and luminously illustrated by Wendell Minor, this beautiful book offers a unique and moving perspective on the Christmas story. It reminds us that all God's creatures, both great and small, celebrated the arrival of the Christ child.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780547533193
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	10/17/2001
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	16 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Eve Bunting has written over two hundred books for children, including the Caldecott Medal-winning Smoky Night, illustrated by David Diaz, The Wall, Fly Away Home, and Train to Somewhere. She lives in Southern California.

Wendell Minor is the celebrated illustrator of more than forty picture books for children. His work reflects his deep interest in American history and American landscape and his desire to bring the natural world to children. He lives with his wife, author Florence Friedmann Minor. Visit him at www.minorart.com.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Bunting offers an unusual perspective on the Nativity story. . . .Minor's realistic artwork captures the unusual menagerie in all its scaly, warty, beady-eyed, spindly legged charm." Booklist, ALA

Nativity stories often mention the ox and lamb as humble visitors to the holy stable where Jesus was born. Here Bunting shares the view of seven other creatures that were also witnesses on that special night. . . .The poetry may inspire youngsters to create verses of their own for other "less loved" creatures.
School Library Journal

Bunting's free verse is graceful and accessible.
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Editorial Reviews

The creature parade to Bethlehem continues (see The Animals' Christmas Carol, reviewed above) in Bunting's (Smoky Night) somewhat self-conscious poems about the lowliest beings to have witnessed Jesus' birth ("I am Rat./ Colorless/ as darkening dirt"). Minor's (Pumpkin Heads!) shimmering watercolors, lit as if by moon and stars, capture desert vistas and the distinguishing characteristics of Snake, Cockroach, Scorpion, Bat and others who traveled afar to be present, if unnoticed, at the Nativity. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Gr 1-3-Nativity stories often mention the ox and lamb as humble visitors to the holy stable where Jesus was born. Here Bunting shares the view of seven other creatures that were also witnesses on that special night. Snake, toad, scorpion, cockroach, bat, spider, and rat all offer a brief poem, always ending with the refrain, "I will be there." Minor's gouache-and-watercolor illustrations feature zoomed-in views of each narrator and occasional double-page spreads from one animal's perspective (snake on a vast expanse of sand, rat nestled in the straw). The last line sums up, "No one will look/beyond the light/to darkness/and the corner where we watch,/unwatched./They will not know/or care./But we were there." Libraries with active Christmas collections will want to add this title for its unique perspective. The poetry may inspire youngsters to create verses of their own for other "less loved" creatures.-G. C. BYRD, Donald & Susan Kuklin. The Harlem Nutcracker. photos. by Susan Kuklin. unpaged. CIP. Hyperion/Jump at the Sun. 2001. Tr $19.99. ISBN 0-7868-0633-8. LC 00-46172. Gr 1-3-In Byrd's "inversion of the traditional Nutcracker by E. T. A. Hoffmann.-The music is Ellington, not Tchaikovsky. The choreography is jazz dancing, not classical ballet." The beautifully designed book captures the stage production featuring an African-American grandmother named Clara and her family at her Sugar Hill mansion in Harlem on Christmas Eve. Her husband Gus, who has recently passed away, magically appears and presents her with a nutcracker, before vanishing. The family gathering presents conflict, drama, happiness, and love and, in the end, the nutcracker is passed to a new generation and Clara joins her beloved Gus in death. Readers can enjoy the story, whether they are actually reading the text or simply looking at the lavish, powerful photographs of onstage action-but perhaps because of this live-action quality, some of the shots are not quite as crisp as others. This fresh reinterpretation of the holiday classic will hold a special appeal for young people familiar with the original and for budding performers.-L. F. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

The indefatigable Bunting (Gleam and Glow, above, etc.) looks "beyond the light / to darkness / and the corner" where shadows hide spider, scorpion, bat, rat, cockroach, and snake, all of whom have come to join the cattle and other livestock gathered around baby Jesus. Though snake's reference to "the curving snake of sand that follows me" is obscure, in general the spare, rhythmic text makes its point ("I am there"), while effectively capturing a sense of the starlit night's significance. Minor's (Cat, What Is That?, p. 941) art looks less finished than usual, however, which would be more acceptable were it consistent-but in jolting contrast to the close-ups of spider and rat, in which every bristle and hair is carefully limned, the pictures of lamb, cow, and donkey, as well as some of the wider landscapes, look like they were painted with a spray gun. An uneven execution, but an eye-opening, consciousness-raising addition to the plethora of "animals at the manger" tales nonetheless. (Picture book. 6-8)

Kirkus Reviews

"Bunting offers an unusual perspective on the Nativity story. . . .Minor's realistic artwork captures the unusual menagerie in all its scaly, warty, beady-eyed, spindly legged charm." Booklist, ALA

Nativity stories often mention the ox and lamb as humble visitors to the holy stable where Jesus was born. Here Bunting shares the view of seven other creatures that were also witnesses on that special night. . . .The poetry may inspire youngsters to create verses of their own for other "less loved" creatures.
School Library Journal

Bunting's free verse is graceful and accessible.
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

From the Publisher