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Trout Are Made of Trees
Product Code: 91370 ISBN: 978-1-58089-137-0 Binding Information: Hardcover Ages: 4 - 7 Grade Highest: 2nd Grade Lowest: Pre-K Availability: In stock. Price: $15.95 How can a leaf become a fish? Join two young children and their dads to find out, as they observe life in and around a stream.
Energetic collage art and simple, lyrical text depict the ways plants and animals are connected in the food web. Back matter provides information about the trout life cycle as well as conservation efforts that kids can do themselves. It's a natural choice for Earth Day.  Be a Stream Hero! For more information on how you can be a stream hero, visit these websites: If you like this book, you'll like: Also Available As:
Binding Information: Paperback
ISBN: 978-1-58089-138-7 Availability: In stock. Price: $6.95  Reviews Kirkus Reviews - January 15, 2008
An unusual blend of narrative, poetry and science, this is an appealing introduction to the food web. Sayre's lyrical prose describes leaves falling into a stream where, after their surfaces are softened by bacteria and algae, they are eaten by crane flies, shrimp and other "shredders." These shredders are then eaten by unidentified predators, which are in turn eaten by trout. The text goes on to describe briefly the process of trout reproduction and then completes its journey through the food web with the final words: "Trout are made of trees. So are the bears and the people who catch the trout and eat them." Endle's illustrations feature, along with a vibrant natural setting in rich golden tones, two children actively engaged in observing and studying the stream. The illustrations, done in mixed-media collage, are a testament to the fact that wondrous things can be created out of the pieces of other things, and thus, they reinforce the theme of interconnectedness that is the heart of this offering.
Booklist - February 15, 2008
A veteran science-book writer introduces the idea of the food chain in this attractive picture book. Sayre unfurls the process behind the intriguing title in a very simple text, explaining how leaves that fall from trees into a stream decompose to become food for aquatic creatures, which are eaten by trout, which eventually become a picnic meal for a man and three inquisitive children--who have observed the whole process and recorded findings in science notebooks. Although the time frame and Sayre's reference to bears at the close of the book ("Trout are made of trees, /So are the bears") are likely to require further explanation, kids will still get a sense of the interconnectedness of nature. Endle's collages are exceptional. Her minimalist figures (each with a similar round, smooth face and tiny dot eyes) are juxtaposed very effectively against crisp yet intricate, layered backrounds of painted-and-patterned cut-papers. Nature remains the focus of each spread, but people appear in most, investigating what's happening--and enjoying every discovery.--Stephanie Zvirin Publishers Weekly - February 18, 2008
Returning to a familiar subject, Sayre (Trout, Trout, Trout) brings her ichthyological knowledge to bear in this primer on river ecology. "In fall, trees let go of leaves,/ which swirl and twirl/ and slip into streams." Alliterative verse zips to the point as it describes the tiny aquatic creatures that eat the leaves and begin a consumption cycle ("Crane flies, caddisflies,/ Shrimp, and stoneflies shred leaves./ Rip and snip!"). Studying this food chain, in Endle's (iBella and the Bunny) interpretation, are a boy and girl camping streamside with their dads. Mixed-media collages in autumnal hues show the pair gathering river samples and putting their large, lemon-shaped faces close to the water's edge. Endle's work is highly detailed and carefully patterned when depicting the fish and water life, but bland and static when she includes the humans. Endnotes discuss the life cycle of trout (the story seems to take a mini-detour for a three-spread overview of the topic). Tips for young environmentalists are also included.
School Library Journal - April 1, 2008
A seemingly impossible premise, “Trout are made of trees,” is at the heart of this explanation of the life cycle of a trout. A boy and girl, one white, one black, are exploring the stream and its inhabitants with their parents. In clear sentences, young readers follow autumn leaves as they fall from a tree into the water, are softened by algae and eaten by other creatures, which are then consumed by the trout. A more detailed explanation is included at the end of the book. Attractive collage illustrations in natural colors fill the spreads and help to explain the text. This unique introduction to how changes in nature create the food web illustrates how the whole world is interconnected.
Science News - March 22, 2008
Elementary school children will be intrigued by this lavishly illustrated and vibrant telling of the trout's life history. Most young readers won't be able to easily sound out or recognize all the words that make up this fish biography, so this is a book to read to them. How nutrients in leaves move up the food chain to nourish big fish is painlessly explained. As youngsters pore over colorful drawings that include bacteria, algae, caddis flies, and shrimp, their narrator offers sound effects to explain the depicted predation: "Swim and snap! Fins flick. Rush. Zap! They eat dragonflies." The book's title comes from its ecological message, which is simply stated: "Trout are made of trees. So are the bears and the people that eat them." Parents or teachers can learn more with the book's primer on the trout's life cycle and can gain green tips on how to become "a stream hero" by fostering the environmental stewardship of local waterways.
Tuscon Citizen - April 27, 2008
The lyrical text and colorful illustrations of this book reveal the connections between plants and animals in a stream. Example: During autumn, when trees lose their leaves in streams, they eventually become food for trout. Sayre is the award-winning author of more than 50 books for young readers.
Indiana Conservation Afield Magazine - May 1, 2008
Four to seven year olds will enjoy a new outdoor book created just for them. Trout Are Made of Trees is written by April Pulley Sayre and illustrated by Kate Endle. Two children go fly-fishing with their dads and discover how plants and animals are connected in the food web in and around a stream. The book is simply written and colorfully illustrated. The story tells the cycle of a trout and ends with conservation efforts kids can practice.
The Horn Book Magazine - July 1, 2008
The food web relationships in a deciduous forest ecosystem are set in the approachable context of a fall camping trip. As two children and two adults camp along the banks of a stream, they encounter the plants, animals, and bacteria of the ecosystem's food web. Readers learn about each step of one chain within the web: the falling leaves that rot with the help of bacteria and algae, the insects that feast on the leaves, and the predators that eat the insects, which are in turn eaten by the trout--that are then eaten by the campers. The focus is one the age-appropriate eating the story; on each page a child-friendly sentence or two conveys a step in the chain, reveling in the "rip and snip," "crunch," and "munch" sounds of all that feasting. Sayre's mixed-media collage inllustrations are flled with the golds, browns, and greens of fall in the woods. Additional information about the trout life cycle, ways to help the environment, and Internet resources are appended.
Bureau County Republican - October 22, 2008
A family camping in autumn woods watches the fish in a clear stream and makes the surprising discovery that "Trout Are Made of Trees." Together the children and parents observe a simple illustration of the food web in streams and rivers. Trees drop leaves into the water, where they become covered with algae and are eaten by small water creatures, who are in turn consumed by larger predators, which are food for the trout of the book's title. Such a bare summary only scratches the surface of this beautifully written book. The text, only a sentence or two per spread, is rich with poetic elements. Fluent cadence suits the subject, and ear-pleasing word choices make the book a treat to read aloud. Watercolor and mixed media collages give the artwork a textured look, with detail to please budding scientists and a sense of fun to tickle kids and parents alike. At the end of the book, a page of text for the read-aloud adult explains the trout life cycle more thoroughly. "Be a Stream Hero!" suggests things a child can do--and encourages others to do--to keep streams and rivers healthy. A list of resources for more information includes books, Web sites, and nature organizations.
Family Magazine - April 1, 2009
Another recent book, this time with illustrator Endle who uses paper collage with mixed media in sunlit colors, expresses the author's wide-ranging interest in the world of nature. Host for a variety of plants and animals, stream connects all of us to the food web in surprising ways. "Leave and bacteria, insects and fish, bears and people too--all are part of the big cirlce of growing, eating and living." The Trout Life Cycle, conservation efforts for kids, and Resources for Further Information are included in the end matter.
KNOW Magazine - May 1, 2009
"In fall, trees let go of leaves, which swirl and twirl, and slip into streams." In Trout Are Made of Trees, the author uses simple, poetic sentences to explore food webs. This exploration takes palce in the fall as two children on a camping trip watch life in a stream. If you are curious about how trout can be made of trees, you will enjoy this book. Fun, bright collages illustrate the text.
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