Over in the garden - Softcover

In this variation of the classic song "Over in the Meadow" (music included), a variety of insects and their habitats are introduced to young readers. Lacking the charm of the original, this new version is tedious and uninteresting. Somewhat garish illustrations accompany the text. "Fun Facts" about the insects are appended. -- Hornbook Guide to Children

To the familiar tune of "Over in the Meadow," this counting book gets cozy with some ugly bugs. Ward and Spengler (Somewhere in the Ocean) magnify the creepy crawlers, from a slimy, liver-brown "mother snail and her little snails four" to a family of hairy brown spiders that leap toward the foreground through massive stems and leaves: "Over in the garden where the vines and berries mix Lived a little mother spider and her baby spiders six. Jump!' said the mother. We jump!' said the six. So they jumped through the garden where the vines and berries mix." Ward provides the song's musical notation and a glossary of larva and arachnids, but her rhymes are pedestrian. Spengler, too, adds extras he playfully hides the numerals in every spread and shows the bugs to come waiting in the wings but the close-ups magnify the creatures to such a degree that they may appear grotesque for some youngsters. -- Publisher Weekly

reSchool-Grade 1-This new take on the familiar old counting rhyme features eye-catching garden critters. Bright, bold colors fill each gouache illustration in which giant insects with large, friendly cartoon-style eyes fill each spread. Helmet-shaped ladybugs, fuzzy bees, hairy spiders, a velvety butterfly, armored pill bugs, and five other species mingle with larger-than-life flowers, plant stems, and fruits. Hidden in each picture is a miniature image of the creature that will appear on the following spread and the numeral that indicates the number of creatures on the page. A short appended list of "Fun Facts" includes all of the insects and their families except the spider and the snail. Ward's book compares favorably with other versions of "Over in the Meadow" by John M. Langstaff and Feodor Rojankovsky (Harcourt, 1957), Ezra Jack Keats (Viking, 1999), and Jane Cabrera (Holiday, 2000), and a new version of Olive Wadsworth's original rhyme featuring illustrations by Anna Vojtech (North-South, 2002). While the others feature illustrations that are attractive, engaging, or sweet, those in Garden command attention.
Susan Scheps, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH
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