Real scary -- The Birdwashing Song: The Willow Tree Loon by Jacqueline Briggs Martin and illustrated by Nancy Carpenter

Teaching Pre K-8, Jan 1996 by Hurst, Carol Otis

Real scary. Let's turn now to ecology and oil spills, no less scary, but a little more realistic. There's no shortage of picture books about environmental dangers, but some of them leave us feeling helpless because the problems are so vast and we might think they're "someone else's" problem. The Birdwashing Song: The Willow Tree Loon (Simon & Schuster, 1995, ISBN 0-689-80415-6) brings an ecological disaster down to size for kids in kindergarten and up.

This is a very affecting picture book in spite of its "do good" nature. Jacqueline Briggs Martin and illustrator Nancy Carpenter present a clean-up attempt by focusing on one loon and many people who combine efforts to save it.

The phrase "we have work to do" is repeated throughout the text. You'll certainly root for the loon's survival, aware that you're looking at a much bigger picture.