MOUSE IN A MEADOW

Himmelman pans across a Northeastern meadow at ground level, introducing an array of exactly drawn, delicately colored flora and fauna. A mouse pulls up a nutsedge stalk, disturbing a leafhopper that jumps to a patch of grass, through which a snake is gliding . . . and so on—all seen by a human observer, whose hands and sketchbook appear briefly along the way. Predation is the order of the day as a moth is snared in a spider web, and then snatched by a meadowlark; an ambush bug nabs a butterfly; and a bobolink and a weasel survey the scene for prey. Readers will be caught up less by the plot than by the pleasure of identifying each flower and creature—aided by a comprehensive visual key at the end. Captioned with simple, declarative sentences, capped by a multimedia resource list, this makes an engaging invitation to young naturalists to go outside, sit down, and look around. (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-9)