• Age: 3 to 18
• Grade: p to 12

Storytime has never been easier with this collection of classic and contemporary rhymes originally published in Chirp Magazine! Animals on Parade features rhymes by internationally beloved authors and illustrators such as Sheree Fitch, Dennis Lee, Barbara Reid, Helaine Becker, Karen Patkau, and Mireille Levert.

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What a treasure! …the variation in artwork, color, and mood of the illustrations and text as the pages of the book are turned creates an enchanting reading experience.

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Enjoy this sweet, lyrical compilation, that's full of happy thoughts, sunny days and rainy nights, stars and fireflies - and a big dose of imagination.

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Animals on Parade: Favourite Rhymes from Chirp Magazine

Owlkids Publishing has put together a collection of all-time favourite poems and illustrations originally published in Chirp Magazine. The poems and illustrations all share the infectious creativity and energy of the magazine itself. Each poem is illustrated by an absolutely amazing double-page spread full of vibrant colours and eye-catching images. Many of the illustrators, such as Mirielle Levert and Stéphane Jorisch, have won the Governor-General’s Award for Illustration several times! Each of the images has its own unique character such as the Plasticine artwork of Barbara Reid for “To Market,” or the idiosyncratic yellow sand scene by Marie-Louise Gay for “At the Beach.”

Students in the primary grades will enjoy this anthology of poems. There are poems about family (“Thinking Happy Thoughts” by Sheree Fitch), dinosaurs (“The Dinosaur Dinner” by Dennis Lee), and skating (“Going to the Game” by Nick Thran). Nursery rhymes and leaps of imagination complete the collection. Who can resist Debbie Ouellet’s “Rainy Night Opera?”

Fish all dance a water dance, Deer kick up their feet and prance, Black crow has his head a-bobbin’, He’s high stepping with the robin.

The beauty of this collection is its tremendous potential for teaching very young readers about the joys of language and art. Children can read along with poems such as “Chook, Chook,” while learning about sounds and repetition of poetic forms as they share the reading. They can also learn to appreciate how the pictures with the various poems work to enhance the text through the use of setting, perspective and colour. What a wonderful resource for parents and teachers!

Animals on Parade: Favourite Rhymes from Chirp Magazine

Over 20 classic and contemporary rhymes originally published in Chirp magazine. This collection features beloved poets such as Sheree Fitch, Marie-Louise Gay and Dennis Lee.