Time to rest: Winter Sleep Sean Taylor; Alex Morss

This is a story for young children that is about how animals hibernate in the winter. It is told through the point of view of a young child who is visiting his grandmother. Children will learn a lot of interesting facts as they look through this beautiful, peaceful and charmingly illustrated book. A great resource for young nature lovers.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this book in exchange for an honest review.

#WinterSleep #NetGalley

From the publisher:

In each cutaway scene, see what the child cannot—that underground below his feet are dens with sleeping creatures, and within the hollow trunks of trees, animals are nesting. After the story, annotated illustrations explain the hibernation facts for each animal and what they will do when they wake up for spring.

Winter Sleep: A Hibernation Story


When it was summer, I stayed at Granny Sylvie’s house. She knows lots of things. Like the names of flowers and how to spot a deer’s hoof print. And where to splash around the pond, climb a slope of green ferns, pass through oak trees with moss on one side, and find…the secret glade.	When I went back to stay with Granny, it was winter. I asked her, “Can we go to the secret glade?” She said, “Yes. If you can find it!” Everything was different. The pond was frozen hard. The ferns on the slope looked dead. The oak trees with moss on one side were all bony.	Granny Sylvie was still telling me about the animals in winter when I was in bed. “You see,” she told me. “There’s plenty of life tucked up, hiding in the cold.” I nodded. I could feel the cozy magic of the dark night outside. And even though it wasn’t very late, I closed my eyes for a winter sleep.

WHAT IS HIBERNATION?

Can you imagine going to bed in winter and not getting up until spring? When a snowy blanket arrives, much of the world seems sleepy. The sun feels lazy. The nights are long. Trees look undressed. Ponds freeze over. Fewer birds sing. Even the flowers are resting.

With plants shutting down for the colder, darker winter months, there are few flowers, fruits, nuts, and leaves for animals to feed on. There are also fewer insects to eat. It is difficult for many creatures to find food and keep warm. Instead they snuggle up somewhere secret, sheltered and safe.

Hibernation is a special kind of deep sleep. It helps animals live through the coldest and hungriest times, by saving them energy. They find or make a place to hide, out of danger from hungry predators.

Mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and minibeasts have different kinds of winter sleep…

chilly places bats spend winter hanging snoozing roost. They store warm fat backs bellies energy

BAT

In chilly places, bats spend most of the winter hanging upside down, snoozing in their roost. They store up warm fat on their backs and bellies, to give them energy.

hedgehog builds nest of leaves in winter. This is often under a shed old rabbit burrow compost heap

HEDGEHOG

A hedgehog builds a nest of leaves in winter. This is often under a shed, in an old rabbit burrow, or under a compost heap. As it sleeps, rolled into a tight ball, its body temperature drops from about 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35°C) to about 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5°C).

Author: joycesmysteryandfictionbookreviews

I love to read, recommend books and open the world of reading to others. I tutor to ensure that the next generation of readers will know the joys of a good book because their reading skills have improved. I am an avid reader, especially of mysteries and fiction. I believe that two of the world's greatest inventions were the public library and eyeglasses! View all posts by joycesmysteryandfictionbookreviews