Starred Review ALA Booklist (Wed Jul 06 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

Starred Review Do we need another good-night book? The answer is unequivocally yes when it is as imaginative and original as this one. Yolen, Stemple, and Sweet have created a bedtime book rooted in the natural order of things, here the life of birds. The text alternates between two and three lines of rhyme, providing a rhythm to the telling, but returning to end each stanza with "you nest here with me," gives the young listener comfort as well as encouragement to participate in the story. Background information is given in the endpapers to identify and add general information to Sweet's gloriously illustrated birds, but throughout, her pictures capture the essence and the joy of the natural world. Beginning in the child's bedroom, where tree branches form the bedstead and birds are in windows and a sketchbook, we move outdoors to experience birds and their families on ledges, in hedges, soaring, and snuggling. Greens and blues dominate many of the pages, providing a sense of liveliness and well-being in a world that birds share with other creatures, flowers, leaves, and buildings. Informative as well as lovely, this delights the eye, mind, and heart.

Horn Book (Wed Jul 06 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

The authors gracefully incorporate natural science into a comforting picture book comparing various nesting birds with a "nesting" child. Almost always, the verse ends with the soothing refrain, "But you nest here with me." Watercolor, gouache, and mixed-media illustrations use rich colors and delicate lines. A closing spread includes additional facts about each bird. A deeply satisfying collaboration between poets and artist.

School Library Journal (Wed Jul 06 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

PreS-K As she puts her daughter to bed, a mother shares a soothing rhyme about birds that nest in places far and near. Each rhymed triplet is followed by the repeated assurance: "But you nest here with me." Sweet's watercolor and gouache landscapes reveal adult birds watching over nestlings. Coots hide in cozy cattail reeds; terns wheel above cliffs; plovers explore sandy shores. Each vista includes many details for viewers to ponder. Older listeners (or adult readers) can find additional information about the featured birds in two pages of authors' notes, which encourage prospective bird watchers. However, the book probably will be read most often as a comforting prelude to sleep. VERDICT A worthwhile purchase for collections that need new selections for bedtime sharing. Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University Library, Mankato