Climbing the Volcano
A Journey in Haiku
-
- $11.99
-
- $11.99
Publisher Description
Through haiku, a young boy narrates his family’s invigorating hike to the peak of Oregon’s South Sister volcano.
For centuries, haiku has offered meditation on the grace and majesty of nature. In Climbing the Volcano, old meets new as a young protagonist uses the poetic form to voice his wonder. Trekking uphill, the family encounters tiny toads, colorful butterflies, soaring birds of prey, and so much more to see, do, and feel.
dormant volcano—
but at sunrise each day
it blazes
Climbing the Volcano is a call to adventure in the natural world, and a wonderful introduction to poetic forms. Young readers will be inspired to summit their own peaks and to find their own voices to share what they discover there. Whether you live in the shadow of a volcano, amid sprawling flatlands, or anywhere in between, Climbing the Volcano invites you to get out there and explore.
Jennifer K. Mann’s breezy, childlike artwork harmonizes with Curtis Manley’s poetry to detail this mesmerizing Pacific Northwest journey.
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Manley (The Rescuer of Tiny Creatures) writes a collection of haiku in the voice of a child whose family summits a dormant volcano in the Pacific Northwest. In digitally finished multimedia artwork that maintains a hand-drawn look, Mann (Maple and Rosemary) views the distant, glowing peak from the group's campsite. Via the poetic form's short lines, Manley describes the tan-skinned family setting off through pine trees, swatting mosquitoes, and spotting other beings ("I crouch down and smile/ at tiny toads"). Soon, snow appears, the pines grow shorter as treeline approaches, and more marvels emerge ("up here in the sky—/ what everyone talks about/ is butterflies"). At the summit, framed against a breathtaking expanse, the young narrator stands on the spot "I saw blazing/ at dawn." Fragments of beauty and knowledge echo the fleeting nature of encounters with life in the wild, and readers share the young hiker's sense of triumph at having taken on an impressive expedition that feels well within the realm of the possible. Back matter includes more about hiking and the animals mentioned. Ages 4–8. Author's agent: Ammi-Joan Paquette, Erin Murphy Literary. Illustrator's agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties.
More Books by Curtis Manley & Jennifer K. Mann