“Nesting,” by Henry Cole.
Katherine Tegen Books, New York, 2019, 32 pages, K-2.
Nature gives us many examples of God’s creations. We see flowers blooming in the spring and crops growing in the fields. During spring, birds are building nests and laying eggs for the continuation of life.
In Nebraska, one of the more common avian species is the robin. Their cheerful chirps tell us that the long cold of winter is coming to an end. Robins busily build beautiful nests for their young and the female robins then lay up to four eggs in the nest.
This life cycle is repeated each year and brings an excitement to many backyards. Henry Cole has created an elegant picture book about this process. The name of this pleasant book is “Nesting.”
The male robin starts the process by singing in the trees. He does this to attract a female robin. Soon, she hears his calls and flies toward him. They quickly mate and begin the process of building a nest. Both birds fly continuously throughout the area, gathering sticks, grass, twigs and mud. The mud will serve the same purpose as cement does in building construction.
Having built their nest, the female robin settles down to lay the eggs. After a short while, the eggs start coming. First, there is one egg. Next, there is another egg. The process continues until there are four beautiful blue eggs in the nest. Now the mother robin must sit patiently while the eggs hatch.
Soon she senses it is time for the chicks to be born. All four baby robins chip their way out of their shells. They are hungry! So, the mother bird must begin hunting for insects and worms to feed the rapidly growing chicks. The father robin also joins in the feeding process. The babies are growing so fast that it is difficult to find enough food for all four of them.
Other problems also begin to show up. Hawks, snakes and other predators are on the lookout for food. Baby robins are very tempting. Because of this, the mother and father robins have to keep a close watch on the hatchlings. But soon, the chicks have grown so large that the nest is too small. Something must change. It is time for the chicks to leave the nest. How does this happen?
How do the little robins learn to fly? Do any of them fall prey to the predators? How do their parents help them? As the seasons begin to change, what do the now grown robins learn? To find out the answers to these and other questions, go to the library and check out this lovely book, “Nesting” by Henry Cole.
“Nesting” is a fine example of a book that shows the life cycle of animals and birds. The drawings are mostly in black and white and are all intricately drawn. When you see the nest, it looks like one you would find in a tree outside your house.
The illustrations bring much joy to this book. The black and white sketches are suddenly contrasted with the brilliant colors of the blue robin eggs, bringing excitement to the text. This makes the beautiful blue robin eggs a delight to view. Cole’s illustrations are very easy to understand and children will have no problem understanding the messages within each illustration. If you are looking for a pleasant book to read aloud with younger children, this title should do the trick. You and the younger readers will enjoy the book.
