Red Sings From Treetops: A Year in Colors

Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors

Written By: Joyce Sidman

Illustrated By: Pamela Zagarenski

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 2009

29 Pages

Poetry Book

      I chose this book because of the use of poetry in the book with colors, and the illustrations are absolutely wonderful.  The book is written in a lyrical form of poetry.  It is about the four seasons and how colors are seen in each one.  It is about a woman and her dog, and the way she sees each season.  The author uses figurative speech to explain the different parts of nature in each season.   The way colors are used is very similar to color poetry, except it is free verse and has no format.   It begins with season spring.  The woman talks about the how she sees red in springtime.  She relates the color to the red birds in the trees; this explains the title of the book.  The woman also describes spring as being green, because everything is blooming and there are several buds on trees.  The woman also explains what the color white looks like in spring; she sees it in the lightning in storms, and also in flowers.  She uses the color pink to describe the baby birds.  Then, the story shifts into summer.  The woman says that the white she sees is ice in glasses.  She also describes the various shades of blue and green in summer.  Next, the season turns into fall.  I love the way that this part is written.  She explains how the color brown is now the most prominent, because green has left.  The woman also explains that red is now the apple trees.  She uses the color orange to describe jack-o-lanterns.  After fall, winter begins, and the woman talks about the soft, light colors of blue and pink in the snow.  She also explains how the color white is seen all around her, and how the dark colors of the tree branches are brought out by the white colors.  And then, the book ends with the color red and the bird appearing once again. 

      I absolutely love the illustrations in this book.  They are wonderful! The artist did a phenomenal job of depicting the colors that are used in the poems.  The colors are very rich. All of the illustrations are paintings.  They are extremely detailed and explain exactly what each poem is talking about to the reader.  I love how the illustrator uses a variety of colors.  The paintings are beautiful!  Each page focuses on a different color.  The colors are greatly emphasized.  The woman’s clothes even blend into the colors around her.  The artist does a wonderful job illustrating what is happening in each poem.

      I would use this in my classroom to teach my students how to write descriptive poetry.  I would be able to teach figurative language with this book, also.  There are several similes and metaphors, as well as plenty of personification.  I feel like the book is more appropriate for second through fourth grade.   I think the language is a little more complex for kindergarten and first grade; however, the book could be used to teach colors.  This book won a Caldecott Honor in 2010.  It has also won many other awards which include the Claudia Lewis Poetry Award, the Horn Book Fanfare, the Cybils Poetry Award, the Minnesota Book Award, CCBC Choices 2010, the New York Public Library’s “100 Titles for Reading and Sharing,” the ABC “Indie” Best Book,  the Bulletin Blue Ribbon, and the Junior Library Guild Selection.  I will definitely use this in my classroom one day! It is an excellent book to use to teach poetry, with wonderful pictures!