When Autumn Falls

by Kelli Nidey, Susan Swan (illustrator)

As September fades, a new season begins. Leaves and temperatures tumble. And, as autumn falls, new colors and smells gradually replace the heat and intensity that was summer. Autumn means the beginning of something new and crisp and familiar.

Genres: Picture Books, Storytime, Childrens, Fiction

32 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2004

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Autumn falls in so many ways in this poetic picture-book from author Kelli Nidey and illustrator Susan Swan, from falling leaves to falling temperatures, falling apples to falling seeds. Night itself falls earlier and earlier, as the season progresses...

I have seen a great deal of discussion over the years of the words autumn and fall, with the former being more common in Britain, and the latter more common in the United States. Both originated in Britain of course, and both have their proponents. One sometimes hears the argument, usually from the type that sneers at American English, that autumn is the more poetic of the two, and fall a mere commonplace - a simple description. While I have always loved the word autumn, which makes a beautiful sound when spoken aloud, I couldn't disagree more strongly with this view. There is a power and simplicity to 'fall,' when used in the seasonal sense, that has always spoken most strongly to me. Many things do fall, in this season, as enumerated above, but the most striking is the falling of the year itself, as it moves into darkness and winter. There is an almost religious feeling to this fall, something that the ancient pagans felt, making the Winter Solstice, when the wheel of the year turned, and the falling of one season gave way to the rising of another, a time of great significance for them. Fall - a short word, but one of deep meaning and thrilling beauty!

While none of this is directly addressed in When Autumn Falls, which pairs a simple, rhythmic text with colorful, cut-paper illustrations, it was running through my mind as I read it, and I appreciated the attention drawn to the theme of falling, in the autumn season. The artwork ably captured the bright colors and atmosphere of fall, making this a pleasant read, from an aesthetic perspective. Recommended to picture-book readers looking for autumn/fall stories for younger children.

[Afaf Ammar · Rating 3 out of 5]

حكاية حلوة ودافئة للترحيب بالخريف
برسوم مبهجة ودافئة كالخريف الدافىء
🤎🧡🍂🌰🍁🍁🌰🍂🧡🤎

12 November 2024

[Roben · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the illustration of the pile of leaves with the dog nose poking through -- the praying mantis, snails, spider and ladybugs along with the color of the leaves made a great image. And I probably missed something because there is a lot going on in the spread - in a good way. A nice reminder of how fall "falls" into place.

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three cheers for this super-clever title.

And what a celebration this picture book is, with author Kelliu Nidey's brilliantly chosen hallmarks of fall. Enhancing every page are astoundingly clever illustrations by Susan Swan.

How does Susan achieve all that? I wonder. Then, not being an artist myself, I simply wallow in the unfathomable-and-fascinating beauty.

FIVE STARS, yes!

[Shana Karnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eve though the weather can't make up its mind, Ruthie still loves this book!

[Christine Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fall Story Time. Simple book about things that happen in the fall. Not much of a story, but it served its purpose.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Soothing to read, this one isn't spectacular, but it does catch the FEELING of autumn, so it's a keeper.

[Caitlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I really enjoy about this book is that the words are within the picture. It’s very unique!

[Vanessa Becerra]

This book is about how everything chances when falls starts to come. For example, the nights et shorter, the leaves start to fall, and temperature starts to get chilly.

[Annie MacPherson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bit dated, but functional.

[Ina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, with its rhythmic text and wonderfully bright illustrations, introduces young readers to all that falls in Autumn. Leaves, football players, the temperature, the sun. The three dimensional paper collage pictures are vibrant and detailed and the kids loved finding the hidden images that can be found throughout this book. Birds in trees, a dogs eye peeking out from under a pile of leaves, the back of a child running behind a tree. There were many opportunities for interaction with my storytime audience, as we counted crows, pumpkins, and students off to school. My audience loved this book.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't think this book is aimed for the right audience. The pictures seem to be for an older audience than what the text is aimed for. It's a fun book to bring in the feel for autumn, but I don't know what group I would read it to--especially as the pictures are best taken in a lap-read than a group.

[Dana Still · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twin text: Fall Leaves Colorful and Crunchy by Martha E.H. Rustad. When Autumn Falls is a well written wonderfully illustrated book. The text is simple and is written in a poem format, with rhyming and fall colors this book will help explain fall to a child. When paired with our twin text book which takes a child through each of the seasons of a leaf, the two books compliment each other.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since the weather just turned, this was a very timely book. Fall happens to be my favorite season and this makes a great case for all the reasons that it is my favorite. The cut paper illustrations are amazingly well done. Quite creative and fun for the story.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has a really clever idea about Autumn and Fall, but it seemed to go right over the kid's heads. They liked the illustrations and the words, but didn't get the big picture. I thought it was clever though!

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read during preschool class visit on 11/2/12: http://storytimesecrets.blogspot.com/...

Read during preschool class visit on 11/21/12: http://storytimesecrets.blogspot.com/...

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute picture book to read as summer is closing in and autumn is beginning to show.

[Natalie Harvey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Each page uses the word "fall" to describe an autumn action.

[Jami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful artwork. Easy read.

[Tricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book to be a solid choice for fall readaloud, encompassing many aspects of the season in bright attractive illustrations and pleasant rhyming text.

[Kireja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read with kids I tutor

[Dianne Norberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice illustrations, nice rhyming book that captures a day in autumn and all the activities that happen in that season.

[June · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple story about all the things that "fall" during autumn.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poetic text weighs heavily on the use of the word fall for the season of autumn. Many things fall during the season in addition to the leaves. Papercut collage artwork is beautiful. PreK-2.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice collages; good book for toddler or preschool story time.

[Ashley Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

simple fall read...

[Monica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I considered this book for an autumn story time for Kindergartners, but had trouble making it flow to read aloud.

[createitlibrarian (Amanda) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great length for storytime. This is a pleasant story that teaches the concept of fall.

[Bethe · Rating 3 out of 5]

cool take on a book about seasons - fall as autumn and fall as the things that gravity takes over and brings to the ground!

[Jeani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic illustrations!