Red Sings from Treetops

Written by Joyce Sidman

Narrated by Barbara Caruso

In spring, Red sings from treetops: cheer-cheer-cheer, each note dropping like a cherry into my ear. Sleepy Yellow sticks to summer. Yet ocean Blue stays cool and alive. Green fades in fall, turns to dust, and no longer keeps Brown at bay. In winter, Pink blossoms on chilled cheeks. And Black echoes through the still of winter's night. But spring comes again, and Red returns-flitting and fluttering, bright as a Cardinal bird. Winner of a Caldecott Honor, this delightful book of free verse poems by celebrated poet Joyce Sidman is "a charming inspiration to notice colors and correlate emotions" (Kirkus Reviews). With each verse of Barbara Caruso's spellbinding narration, children and adults alike will appreciate the colors of the seasons. ". as the title implies, the colors that surprise on every page do sing."-Booklist, starred review

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Feb 8, 2013
• ISBN: 9781470357030

Joyce Sidman

The Newbery Honor winner and Sibert Medalist Joyce Sidman is today's foremost nature poet for children.  Accolades for her books include two Caldecott Honors, a Lee Bennet Hopkins Award, winner of the Claudia Lews Award, and many stars and best of lists.  For her award-winning body of work, she won the Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children. She lives in Wayzata, Minnesota. Visit www.joycesidman.com    

Reviews for Red Sings from Treetops

[whisper1_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is yet another beautiful story with special illustrations by Pamela Zagarenski. Since discovering Zagarenski through the first book I read of hers, I am on a quest to read all books containing her illustrations.It is difficult to describe Zagarenski's illustrations. To use a trite phrase, "You have to see them to believe them!"I read this book to my six year old neighbor, Andres, whom I am tutoring with the hope that he will learn to love books at an early age -- just as I did. The team of Joyce Sidman and Pamela Zagarenski is a winning one. This is not the first book they have published together.The illustrations and writing take us through a world of the colors of seasons. While it may sound boring, and certainly this mode was used in other books, none can be as wonderful as this one!

[rosa.mill · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book is all about color. There is a little text on each page describing how each color relates to certain seasons. Some of the concepts are a little abstract but the book is definitely gorgeous. Pay close attention to illustrations so you can see everything that is going on.

[thornton37814 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This illustrated poem takes a look at the seasons by examining colors in each. The strength of the book lies in the illustrations rather than the poem itself. The detail in the illustrations is definitely what garnered it the Caldecott honor.

[mbabst-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book was an interesting read because I have not read a poetic, children's picture book. I felt as though this unusual tactic worked quite well with the story line. In this poetic book, you will follow the adventures of children during the summer time. The rhythm and rhyme to this poem allows the reader to feel almost every sense of summer time. instead of just reading the words on the page, you are able to jump into the poem as if you were experiencing it yourself. I would read this book to a group of 4-8 year olds because it is a simple understanding and an easy read.

[heidijones · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read this book to my 3rd graders, and the students got to be artists, authors and scientists as they listened and paid attention to what the poetry made them see and feel. They observed that color can represent almost anything in the world, both tangible and intangible. We discussed the careful selection of color by artists and illustrators. The illustrations are wonderful and whimsical. Sidman takes us through the seasons and explores the five senses through poetry. This is a lovely collection of poems that children can connect to easily.

[imandayeh · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This lyrical book of poems is mesmerizing. The descriptive language dances around in your head. I felt like I experienced all four seasons in a few minutes. This book is great to use as an introduction to poetry for children. The illustrations are fun and fit each season perfectly. I would recommend for grades 1-4.

[michaela.bushey · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Red Sings From Treetops combines beautiful artwork with fantastic, image-evoking poetry to present the concepts of colors and seasons. The reader follows a charming-looking character and his dog (both wearing crowns) through the seasons and the colors that make them come alive. Multimedia illustrations perfectly compliment the varied descriptions in the poetry - the result is a very aesthetically pleasing product. In a younger classroom, this book could be used to introduce concepts of colors and seasons and would make a great read-aloud. For older students, it would be a fantastic mentor text in a poetry unit. A mini-lesson on metaphors and imagery would put this text to use perfectly.

[dukefan86 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What a neat book! I loved the colors of the illustrations and the images that the words produced.

[abigailadams26 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Poet Joyce Sidman and artist Pamela Zagarenski, who previously collaborated on 2007's This is Just to Say: Poems of Apology and Forgiveness, joined forces once again in this lovely picture-book, which was chosen as a Caldecott Honor Book in 2010. An exploration of the seasons, and the colors that weave through them - the new, "shy" green of spring, the "humming, shimmering, snoozing" blue of summer, the "fat and glossy" brown of fall, the "powder-soft" pink of winter - it boasts gorgeous mixed media illustrations that perfectly complement the poetic narrative.Truthfully, I found the artwork in Red Sings from Trees far more compelling than the text, and my high four-star rating is more a result of aesthetic than literary appreciation. It's not that there was anything wrong with Sidman's poetry - in fact, some of the images were immensely evocative - but the finished product simply didn't speak to me. Zagarenski's illustrations, on the other hand, with their brilliantly appropriate use of color, and their many quirky details - the beautiful butterfly sail, in summer; the fabric-like interiors of the pumpkin, in fall - really drew me in! Highly recommended to anyone who appreciated beautiful picture-book art, and (because tastes vary), to young readers who appreciate poetry.

[claireforhan · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I absolutely loved the images in this book. Using mutlimedia- paint, wood and paper/newspaper- this book really comes to life through the colors. I thought the images were very detailed, but at the same time very simple. They matched the text, and brought life to the text. A lot of repeating images (a little red bird) are used throughout the book. The story line was very interesting and unique. The author writes about the colors in the season, but as if the color were living things (nouns and not adjectives). I thought this was a really great way to have the reader to look at colors as more than just a describing word, and how they can actually bring things to life. Teaching Extension:Have students write their own poem about a color, and bring that color to life by treating it as a noun and not an adjective.

[ymcmillion · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a great book that I will use when I am teaching my students about colors and about the seasons. This book will go great with both of the lessons and is a good book to just read during read aloud times or when you are waiting to go to lunch or take pictures with students.

[sjkessel · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sidman, J. (2009). Red Sings from Treetops: A year in colors. New York: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children.9780547014944Appetizer: Within the 28 poems (approximately, I'm so bad at math I don't even trust my ability to count anymore), this picturebook shares the way the different colors behave during the four seasons (beginning with spring). The colors are repeated, their presence in nature expressed in different ways varying from season to season.I absolutely LOVE the way the colors are personified in the poems. My favorite is a portion of the poem about green in the spring: "Green is newin the spring. Shy.Green peeks from buds,trembles in the breeze."How beautiful is that image?! I heart it fiercely.As one of the Caldecott honor books for this year, you can also expect that the illustrations are beautiful. And that is the case. There is fantastic use of colors and designs that help add to the tone and feelings of the poetry. The illustrations help to provide a sense of magic for the illustrations. For example, on the page that describes black in the fall, an inky whale is incorporated into the sky since the moon swims "through its cool sky-pool." (I know that probably sounds weird. But you can always check out the book for yourself and hopefully it will make a little more sense then)Dinner Conversation:"In SPRINGRed singsfrom treetops:cheer-cheer-cheer,each note droppinglike a cherry into my ear.""And here in secret places,peeps Pink:hairless,featherless,the color ofnewthings.""Green is queenin summer.""Purple poursinto summer eveningsone shadow at a time,"To Go with the Meal:Aside from enjoying some beautiful poetry (and some Caldecott honor earning illustrations) a teacher could use this book in a lesson about the use of colors in poetry and how they help create different meanings, images and emotions.Rather than share the poems of this picturebook in just one sitting, a teacher could regularly present the poems throughout the school year to reflect the changes in seasons (that is of course, assuming the class is being taught in a part of the world where it actually snows in the winter).In response to hearing or reading these poems, children could write their own poems, paying attention to incorporate colors into their writing.Another route would be to include the poems into a science lesson on the causes of the seasons.Tasty Rating: !!!!

[kelleyhar · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Awesome pictures, but too many words and it doesn't flow

[pjw1173 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn't like this book as much as the other three Sidman books that I bought for my classroom library. This one seemed too primary for me. I can see it being useful in a first grade classroom.The poems deal with colors and the seasons.

[mildred981 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This story is about the four seasons. It tells vividly through bold colors and descriptive details how each season is unique, what colors are associated with that season. Also the beauty that comes with each season. The author gives colors human like actions such as "Red whispers along my finger with little beetle feet". The author uses many methaphors throughout the story to keep it entertaing. The beautiful imagery made it very beleviable, almost wishing you were there. The book is educational for young children because it explains the 4 seasons using all of the senses. I love how this book allows your imagnination to run wild with colors.

[anniecase_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What a wonderful introduction to poetry! The imagery is real, but lyrical, inciting interest in young readers for its accessibility. The pictures had enormous depth and the subject of seasons is one children will enjoy and relate to.

[teacherliz_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is really a picture book written in verse. It starts in spring, and describes what each color is like in spring time, from the new, shy green to white sounding like storms. Then it moves through summer, fall and winter, describing what those same colors are like during each different season. The mixed media illustrations give helpful clues to the meaning of the text.2010 Caldecott HonorThis is a good study of colors for younger students. It could also be used with middle elementary students to demonstrate how picture clues and background knowledge help readers infer so they can extend their understanding of the text. I could see reading this aloud pointing out and having students use picture clues heavily at first; then having students discuss latter sections using text clues before showing them the pictures, because text clues are what students need to use more of as they move into books with fewer pictures.

[jasmine84_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well this book to me is colorful all full year. the words will change whenever move to next season. This is type like poem but descent one not that really hard to figure out the meaning...

[jfhennessy · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An exqusite book about colors throughout the changing seasons. Text and illustrations are amazing.