Iceberg
A Life in Seasons
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
An iceberg shears from a glacier and begins a journey that takes it through Antarctica’s seasons.
Follow the iceberg in the spring as it watches penguins trek across the ice to their winter homes and senses krill stirring underneath the ice. With summer comes more life: the iceberg sees humpback whales spiral and orca gather. And the iceberg moves too, ever shrinking as the sun softens its edges and undersea currents wash it from below. When autumn arrives with cooling temperatures, the sea changes and the iceberg is trapped in the ice for the winter freeze. Then spring returns and the iceberg drifts into a sheltered bay and falls, at the end of its life cycle.
But if you think this is the end of the journey, look closer — out in the ocean, an iceberg shears from a glacier and settles to the sea, beginning the process anew. Ocean, sky, snow and ice dance a delicate dance in this evocative portrayal of the life cycle of an iceberg.
The poetic text and beautiful illustrations make this a unique nonfiction offering for young readers. This book ends with an author’s note explaining the effects of climate change on the Arctic and Antarctic regions, as well as a map and a glossary.
Key Text Features
additional information
author’s note
glossary
map
gatefold
Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.4
Ask and answer questions to help determine or clarify the meaning of words and phrases in a text.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Poetic depictions of a newly calved iceberg across the seasons characterize Saxby's witness to abundant Antarctic biodiversity. "If this world looks empty,/ look closer," beckon early lines, which go on to name leopard seals, "fish-fat and sleek" emperor penguins, "clouds of krill," terns, blue-eyed cormorants, and humpback whales, among others, as just some of the creatures that share the iceberg's environment. Employing techniques including watercolor and collage to capture the icy landscape, Racklyeft's illustrations help to enliven Saxby's portrait of the Antarctic, and a gatefold immerses readers into what is a luminous underwater home for multitudes of marine animals. Interconnectedness is emphasized throughout ("Squid chase krill./ Birds chase squid./ Orca gather, linger, watch and seize./ Short-tailed shearwaters feast then return/ to their chicks"), and when the iceberg tips below velvety water, verse remarks on nature's cyclical characteristics for a majestic, conservation-oriented conclusion about a place that "feels everything we do." A note about polar regions and glossary conclude. Ages 3–6.
