Hungry Bird

Reviewed by: Sheila Dube - Springvale Public Library, Springvale, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: January 8, 2017

Review

Bird is back for a third adventure. This time the irritable and melodramatic bird and his kind friends are setting off on a hike when bird's tummy begins to rumble. In turn and in ever-increasing volume and attitude, bird asks each friend what they brought him for a snack. Fox packed berries, Beaver packed sticks, Sheep packed grass and so on. Nothing is to bird's liking and his demands turn into a melt down. As he finally recovers and realizes his friend's have ignored his outbursts and have begun eating their snack together, he tries each one with limited success. When bird's favorite snack wiggles by, a worm, obstinate bird is not hungry but needs a drink! As in the other books about bird, Tankard uses a dark-lined caricature of each animal placed in a background that resembles a collage of real landscapes and mixed cartoon flora. The effect keeps the attention on the main characters but provides the chaos brewing in bird's attitudes. Useful for story times and preschool settings on the theme of kindness, sharing and trying new foods.

Overall Book Score: good