Over in the Grasslands: On an African Savanna
Written by Marianne Berkes
Illustrated by Jill Dubin
The latest installment of the Marianne Berkes series has a lot going on. It is a counting book, reinforced by both the numbers of baby animals and the lineup of African gourd rattles. It is poetry, set to the rhythm of the traditional song “Over in the Meadow.” It is for learning about the African savanna and the animals that inhabit that area. It is hunting for nearly hidden animals in the pictures. It teaches about the song itself and about the techniques used by the illustrator.
Over in the grasslands
Where the acacia trees grew
Lived a tall mother giraffe
And her little calves two.
Altogether, first or second graders get to learn about twenty animals. Some of them may seem familiar from the zoo, – zebra, giraffe, elephant – but many are probably animals the readers have never seen – redbilled oxpeckers, naked mole rats, leopard tortoises. And none of them live your backyard. In the last pages, Berkes writes about the many themes used, including the ten different adjectives and the different baby names used. She also mentions many places to learn more, and she was careful to expalin that the numbers of babies each animal can have is fictional. Dubin writes about her collage technique, how important the different papers are, and what inspired the details.
A great addition to the counting library.
Title: Over in the Grasslands: On an African Savanna- Author: Marianne Berkes
- Illustrator: Jill Dubin
- Publisher: Dawn Publishers, 2016
- Reviewer: Sue Poduska
- Format: Paperback, 32 pages
- Grade Level: PreK to 2
- Genre: Nature, Geography, Counting, Poetry, Music
- ISBN: 978-1-58469-568-4
- Extras: Fact or Fiction?, Life on the African Savanna, Who Are the “Hidden” Animals in the Grasslands?, About the Animals, Tips from the Author, Tips from the Illustrator, Over in the Grasslands [music]
