Elementary Secondary Higher Ed Common Reads

Elementary Education


Guides
Collections
News
(0)
Wish List (0)
Wish List
Download high-resolution image Look inside

The Day the Babies Crawled Away

Author Peggy Rathmann
Illustrated by Peggy Rathmann
Look inside
Hardcover
$18.99 US
Penguin Young Readers | G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
8.9"W x 11.8"H x 0.4"D  
On sale Oct 13, 2003 | 40 Pages | 9780399231964
Up to Kindergarten
Reading Level: Lexile NP
Add to cart Add to list Exam Copies
From the creator of Good Night, Gorilla comes another bedtime adventure!

What a lovely day at the fair. Children lining up for pony rides . . . moms and dads in a pie-eating contest . . . babies chasing butterflies . . . babies heading for the trees . . . I SAY! Where are those babies GOING? Only a small boy sees them leaving and follows as the babies chase butterflies in trees, frogs in a bog, even bats in a cave, ignoring pleas to come back. But not to worry, our hero saves the day, making sure that all the babies get home safely from their appealing adventures.

Caldecott Medal winner Peggy Rathmann has created a highly original story told in a lilting text and a bold new style with classic black silhouettes against stunning skies of many colors that change and glow as afternoon turns into evening.
Caldecott-medalist Peggy Rathmann was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, and grew up in the suburbs with two brothers and two sisters. Ms. Rathmann graduated from Mounds View High School in New Brighton, Minnesota, then attended colleges everywhere, changing her major repeatedly. She eventually earned a BA in psychology from the University of Minnesota. Ms. Rathmann studied commercial art at the American Academy of Art in Chicago, fine art at the Atelier Lack in Minneapolis, and children's-book writing and illustration at the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. The resulting book, Ruby the Copycat, earned Ms. Rathmann the "Most Promising New Author" distinction in Publishers Weekly's 1991 annual Cuffie Awards. In 1992 she illustrated Bootsie Barker Bites for Barbara Bottner, her teacher at Otis. A homework assignment produced an almost wordless story, Good Night, Gorilla, inspired by a childhood memory. That story, however, was only 19 pages long, and everyone agreed that the ending was a dud. Two years and ten endings later, Good Night, Gorilla was published and recognized as an ALA Notable Children's Book for 1994. The recipient of the 1996 Caldecott Medal, Officer Buckle and Gloria, is the story of a school safety officer upstaged by his canine partner. Ms. Rathmann lives and works in northern California, on a ranch she shares with her husband, John Wick. View titles by Peggy Rathmann
  • WINNER
    New York Times Notable Book
  • WINNER
    Washington Post Best Book of the Year
"Caldecott Medalist Rathmann scores again with this rhymed tale of a child’s struggles to chaperone a wayward flock of errant babies, illustrated in vivacious, finely-cut silhouettes. . . Rathmann tucks in plenty of visual byplay and jokes, and brings the episode to a cozy close with the lad curled up in his own mother’s lap. At least as inventive and captivating as 10 Minutes Till Bedtime, this is bound to be a similar hit with children." —Kirkus Reviews

* "[A] rollicking rhyming tale, illustrated in needle-sharp, atmospheric silhouettes against twilight skies. . . Rathmann's poem never misses a beat, and her triumphant finale does not pass judgment on the parents; instead she praises the sleepy, baby-wrangling hero." —Publishers Weekly, starred review 

"A pint-sized do-gooder goes to great lengths to round up a bunch of renegade babies who have wandered off and returns them to their parents. Marvelous backlit silhouettes convey the drama and the humor in this sublime slice of inspired silliness." —School Library Journal

"Rathmann uses an old-fashioned style of illustration in a new and dramatic way, telling the story through black silhouettes set against a glowing neon sky. The style isolates the important parts of the tale, highlighting each gesture and detail Rathmann wants us to see and eliminating everything extraneous. There are many repeating motifs for children to seek out in each spread, and viewers will notice many details missed earlier when they go through the book a second time. The theme of this fresh, original book appeals, too, as the young would-be firefighter gets to be the hero." —The Horn Book

"The conceit is clever, the artwork is creative and lovely, and children with patience and imagination will find a bit more to see than they might find in a book with conventional art." —Booklist

About

From the creator of Good Night, Gorilla comes another bedtime adventure!

What a lovely day at the fair. Children lining up for pony rides . . . moms and dads in a pie-eating contest . . . babies chasing butterflies . . . babies heading for the trees . . . I SAY! Where are those babies GOING? Only a small boy sees them leaving and follows as the babies chase butterflies in trees, frogs in a bog, even bats in a cave, ignoring pleas to come back. But not to worry, our hero saves the day, making sure that all the babies get home safely from their appealing adventures.

Caldecott Medal winner Peggy Rathmann has created a highly original story told in a lilting text and a bold new style with classic black silhouettes against stunning skies of many colors that change and glow as afternoon turns into evening.

Author

Caldecott-medalist Peggy Rathmann was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, and grew up in the suburbs with two brothers and two sisters. Ms. Rathmann graduated from Mounds View High School in New Brighton, Minnesota, then attended colleges everywhere, changing her major repeatedly. She eventually earned a BA in psychology from the University of Minnesota. Ms. Rathmann studied commercial art at the American Academy of Art in Chicago, fine art at the Atelier Lack in Minneapolis, and children's-book writing and illustration at the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. The resulting book, Ruby the Copycat, earned Ms. Rathmann the "Most Promising New Author" distinction in Publishers Weekly's 1991 annual Cuffie Awards. In 1992 she illustrated Bootsie Barker Bites for Barbara Bottner, her teacher at Otis. A homework assignment produced an almost wordless story, Good Night, Gorilla, inspired by a childhood memory. That story, however, was only 19 pages long, and everyone agreed that the ending was a dud. Two years and ten endings later, Good Night, Gorilla was published and recognized as an ALA Notable Children's Book for 1994. The recipient of the 1996 Caldecott Medal, Officer Buckle and Gloria, is the story of a school safety officer upstaged by his canine partner. Ms. Rathmann lives and works in northern California, on a ranch she shares with her husband, John Wick. View titles by Peggy Rathmann

Awards

  • WINNER
    New York Times Notable Book
  • WINNER
    Washington Post Best Book of the Year

Praise

"Caldecott Medalist Rathmann scores again with this rhymed tale of a child’s struggles to chaperone a wayward flock of errant babies, illustrated in vivacious, finely-cut silhouettes. . . Rathmann tucks in plenty of visual byplay and jokes, and brings the episode to a cozy close with the lad curled up in his own mother’s lap. At least as inventive and captivating as 10 Minutes Till Bedtime, this is bound to be a similar hit with children." —Kirkus Reviews

* "[A] rollicking rhyming tale, illustrated in needle-sharp, atmospheric silhouettes against twilight skies. . . Rathmann's poem never misses a beat, and her triumphant finale does not pass judgment on the parents; instead she praises the sleepy, baby-wrangling hero." —Publishers Weekly, starred review 

"A pint-sized do-gooder goes to great lengths to round up a bunch of renegade babies who have wandered off and returns them to their parents. Marvelous backlit silhouettes convey the drama and the humor in this sublime slice of inspired silliness." —School Library Journal

"Rathmann uses an old-fashioned style of illustration in a new and dramatic way, telling the story through black silhouettes set against a glowing neon sky. The style isolates the important parts of the tale, highlighting each gesture and detail Rathmann wants us to see and eliminating everything extraneous. There are many repeating motifs for children to seek out in each spread, and viewers will notice many details missed earlier when they go through the book a second time. The theme of this fresh, original book appeals, too, as the young would-be firefighter gets to be the hero." —The Horn Book

"The conceit is clever, the artwork is creative and lovely, and children with patience and imagination will find a bit more to see than they might find in a book with conventional art." —Booklist

Other Books by this Author

Related Articles

General Education & Professional Learning

Reading with Purpose Summit Event

On Monday, June 10th, Penguin Random House Education and DK Learning co-hosted a Reading with Purpose Summit Event in collaboration with Molly Ness, PhD. The event took place at Penguin Random House’s NYC headquarters and included sessions featuring leading education experts and a lunchtime author panel. The in-person professional learning event was built to show

Read more

Reading with Purpose Summit Event

General Education & Professional Learning
Social Studies & History Math The Arts General Early Concepts Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series Science & Technology

2024 Elementary School Collection

The Penguin Random House Education Elementary School Collection features outstanding fiction, nonfiction, and picture books from Penguin Young Reader’s, Random House Children’s, DK, and Grupo Editorial, as well as children’s publishers distributed by Penguin Random House. Explore online or download this valuable resource to discover great books in specific topic areas such as: Leveled Readers,

Read more

2024 Elementary School Collection

Social Studies & History Math The Arts General Early Concepts Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series Science & Technology
DK Learning Phonic Books Sampler Request
General Publisher's Spotlight English Language Arts

DK Learning Phonic Books Sampler Request

Thank you for your interest in DK Learning | Phonic Books. To download the DK Learning | Phonic Books sampler with four complete readers, please click here and complete the form. Once your information is successfully submitted, a link to download the sampler will be provided on the confirmation screen.   Click here to learn

Read more

DK Learning Phonic Books Sampler Request

General Publisher's Spotlight English Language Arts
education translanguaging collections affirming bilingual and multilingual learners
General Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series The Arts

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

General Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series The Arts

About Elementary Education

Penguin Random House Education

Penguin Random House

About Elementary Education

Penguin Random House Education

Penguin Random House

Back to Top
0
    • 0
    Elementary Education
    Wish List (0)