Fox
It is spring. / In the forest, among the roots / of a great oak tree in a brown earthen den, / a baby fox is born.” The warmth and love of his parents enables a little fox to move gradually toward independence in Kate Banks’ wholly comforting yet expansive story. With her trademark blend of vivid language and soothing tone, Banks chronicles passing days and changing seasons as she details skills the young animal is learning from its parents and his eagerness to explore the wider world on his own. The brief narrative’s emotional refrain comes in two lyrical lines that are never identical but reference one another rhythmically and thematically, affirming--in different ways--that time brings change and growth. That sense of growth, change, and security imbedded in the story is echoed in Georg Hallenslaben’s warm, richly colored and textured paintings, which further suggest ways the fox is growing to maturity and readying himself to meet the ever-changing world. ©2007 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
Illustrated by Georg Hallensleben
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 3-6
Age Range:
Babies/Toddlers (birth – 3)
PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7)
Format:
Picture book
Subjects:
Animals (Fiction)
Change
Independence/Self-Reliance
Seasons
Publishers:
Farrar Straus Giroux, Frances Foster Books
Publish Year: 2007
Pages: 32
ISBN: 0374399670
CCBC Location: Picture Book, Banks