Sing in the Spring!

by Sheree Fitch, Deb Plestid (Art)

A playful, poetic picture book celebrating the coming of spring from the award-winning author of Summer Feet and featuring luminous original artwork by an internationally renowned quilt artist.

Buds of leaves
still curled in knots
just like teeny polka dots
spots of green on bare-branched trees
soon buds will bloom and leaves
unfurl
yes, shimmery light
on every thing.

Spring is sometimes a long time coming. As snow melts and winter slowly blows away, the earth begins its unfolding of new life and hopeful greening. While we can still snowshoe through the soft white and sip the clear, wintry air, we dream of the sparkle of spring, that wind-chapped-cheek time, where "baby fiddleheads sleep/like so many questions deep" and the sun comes "smiling in/as longer days of light begin."

A poetic celebration of the season, Spring Song! invites readers into a rural family home and the natural world that surrounds them. Tiny details and clues emerging from hibernation are a source of wonder, seeds hold secrets of sunflowers, and mudliscious puddles await!

Genres: Picture Books, Poetry

32 pages, Hardcover

Published March 30, 2022

About the author

From the Writer's Federation of Nova Scotia:

"Sheree Fitch is an educator, literacy activist and author of award winning poetry, picture books, nonfiction, plays and novels for all ages. Her first book, Toes in My Nose, illustrated by Molly Lamb Bobak, was launched in 1987. The books that followed have garnered numerous awards, including The Mr. Christie Award for There Were Monkeys in My Kitchen, The Anne Connor Brimer Award for Mable Murple. If You Could Wear my Sneakers, a book on Children's Rights commissioned by Unicef won both the Ontario Silver Birch Award and Atlantic Hackmatack award.

In 1998 she won the prestigious Vicky Metcalf award for a body of work inspirational to Canadian Children. She has been goodwill ambassador for Unicef since 1994 and her lipslippery adventures have taken her to remote parts of the globe.

Her work as a poet and literacy educator has taken her to the Arctic as eight-time poet laureate for Peter Gzowski's fundraisers for literacy and to Bhutan where she taught writing and participated in that country's first national reading week. Author readings have taken her to Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Belize and Mexico.

Currently, she is Honorary Spokesperson for the New Brunswick Coalition for Literacy. The coalition recently initiated the Sheree Fitch Adult Learner Scholarships. She is also Honorary Spokesperson for the Nova Scotia Read to Me Program. This program provides literacy information to new parents and books for newborns. Each year she sponsors a writing competition for New Brunswick Youth. Her latest venture in literacy education includes completing a three year (summer ) writer in residency for Somebody's Daughter --- out on the tundra in Nunavut. This is an innovative program for Inuit women started by Bernadette Dean, Sheree's friend and former student from a writing workshop Ftich held during one of her soujourns to the north.

In the fall 2004, Gooselane Editions released an expanded anniversary edition of her adult book of poetry In This House Are Many Women and Orca published Pocket Rocks, illustrated by Helen Flook.

In May 2005, Fitch's first novel (ages ten and up), The Gravesavers, was published by Doubleday Canada Random House. A coming of age story blended with a historical event—the wreck of S.S. Atlantic in 1873—Fitch considers the novel "a kind of love letter" to her Maritime home and a celebration of her roots. Upcoming books include If I Had A Million Onions, a collection of nonsense for all ages and Peek a Little Boo, a book for babies.

Fitch lives with her husband, Gilles Plante and divides her time between Washington D.C. and River John, Nova Scotia. In demand as a visiting author, workshop leader and keynote speaker, she is currently working on an adult novel. She holds a B.A. from St. Thomas, an M.A. from Acadia University and honorary doctorates from both St. Mary's and Acadia for her contribution to Canadian literature and education. She has two grown children."

Reviews

[Theediscerning · Rating 1 out of 5]

One benefit of being my age and yet so bloody childish is that I can easily revert back to a younger self, and judge whether I would have liked a book when I was the target reader. And unfortunately I cannot say that is the case at all here. Would I have appreciated the quilted, collaged feel of the artworks? Probably not. But the biggest problem – for the me of then and the me of now – is the fact the poetry below the imagery is so disjointed, dropping rhymes here, jumping styles, voice and approach there, and even switching concrete poetry on one occasion. It's not nearly clear enough that these are disparate works, as is evident when you later turn to the blurb and find it was written over a long span of years and is therefore lacking coherency as a result. Split this into double-paged spreads with their attendant words and it's still a clunky, awkward mish-mash of semi-hymnic appreciations of spring, but whatever you want to call it it certainly lacks the child-friendly style such a subject deserves. One and a half stars.

[Sharon Drummond · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a quilter I really love the idea of quilted illustrations, and with fibre arts surging in popularity I think there is definitely a place for this style. Unfortunately, while the illustrations are beautiful, as a kids book this one just didn’t land for me. The quilted illustrations felt a bit too “grandma” to be fun for kids, and the poems didn’t hold my interest. I wanted to love this book, but it unfortunately didn’t deliver.

[Storytime With Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

We are celebrating spring and hoping to encourage the warm weather to seep its way in with Sing in the Spring by Sheree Fitch and Deb Plestid.

Sheree Fitch is the Canadian queen of poetry. You are probably already well aware of her delightful poems and books such as Mabel Murple and this new story in verse is another fun and whimsical story all about the changes in the seasons. I love how the story starts at the end of winter, when the ground is still blanketed with snow. The story is so true to a good Canadian spring with the warm days followed by the cold, false spring and second winter as underground things begin stirring. There is a lovely refrain through the whole story to remind readers to sing in the spring, to sing for the plants and the animals and all the little miracles we are treated to throughout the season.

Sheree Fitch captures the wonder of a good old spring exploration and I appreciated how the whole story ebbs and flows. Some verses rhyme and some don’t. Some verses are written as concrete poems, taking on the shape of the subject. The variety of the poetic verse makes this a fabulous book to share not just with the youngest of readers but also those who are older, perhaps studying poetry.

This story is especially delightful thanks to the gorgeous illustrations by Deb Plestid. Her incredible quilt work illustrations completely capture all the sights and feelings of the spring time. Readers will be awestruck by the detail and the precision in the fabric and needlework. The work reminds me of the beautiful quilts my grandmother and aunties make.

[Storywraps · Rating 5 out of 5]

This wonderful book is an ode to Spring, the long awaited season that follows a dormant and freezing Winter. Spring brings hope and freshness as the plants begin to sprout, the sun warms the earth once again, and every person is eager to get outside and partake of the welcomed changes that are occurring. Most people, both young and old, are weary of the ice, snow and having to bundle up when they go outside. Spring is the season that unleashes that pent-up energy from being tucked away inside and demands freedom for the captives once again.

"Sing in the Spring!" is a rhyming celebration of this magical season which transforms the icy white of Winter into vibrant greens and fragrant coloured blossoms.

"Buds of leaves
still curled in knots
just like teeny polka dots
spots of green on bare-branched trees
soon buds will bloom and leaves
unfurl
yes, shimmery light
on every thing."


The unique and delightful artwork of Deb Plestid is created from quiltwork labours of love and are stunning to behold. Both the illustrations and the poems will bring happiness to hearts as they interact with all the magic and transformations that Spring has to offer. I highly recommend this book.



Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Jeanine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great gift idea for Aunt Lori!

The unique quilted/embroidered/painted fabric illustrations are stunning. The poem is fine but too long and definitely not suitable for young children as story time, but MAYBE as a bedtime story if broken apart or for the very youngest who are just content listening to any story.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.

[Victoria Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art was really nice but wasn’t a huge fan of the verse.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artwork of Deb Plestid in this book is extraordinary fabric art. She embellished Sheree Fitch's rhythmic, picturesque, expressive words so beautifully. This book is full of the sounds, the visuals, the emotions of wonderful spring. Lovely.