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133rd out of 508 books
—
487 voters
The Salamander Room
A boy finds a salamander in the woods and imagines the many things he can do to turn his room into a perfect salamander home. Together, Anne Mazer and Steve Johnson have created a woodland paradise that any salamander would love to share with a child.
Paperback, 32 pages
Published
March 1st 1994
by Dragonfly Books
(first published January 1st 1991)
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This book is about a boy who brings home a salamander and describes to his mother how he will change his room accommodate the salamander's needs. Fabulous and vivid matching illustrations show the room's transformation into a wonderful natural habitat. This is such a great book to show how different creatures have different needs and will definitely make kids think. It also encourages an active imagination. Highly recommended!
5 likes · like · see review
view all 10 comments
Mar 20, 2009
Kathryn
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Kathryn by:
Chandra--thank you!
Shelves:
childrens-picture-books,
nature-animals
What a great concept! I love how the story grows with the little boy's imagination, how the mother carefully weaves "reality" into the boy's perceptions of taking care of a captured salamander--the story and beautiful illustrations do a great job showing nature, habitats and the food chain while also illustrating a boy's sense of wonder, imagination and real desire to care for his dear little salamander.
I also like that it's left up to the audience whether they want to condone or condemn taking...more
I also like that it's left up to the audience whether they want to condone or condemn taking...more
5 likes · like · see review
Feb 13, 2009
Abigail
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Young Nature Lovers / Children Who Can't Have Certain Pets
Recommended to Abigail by:
Chandra
Shelves:
picture-books
Review Temporarily Removed.
3 likes · like · see review
This story is rich in vocabulary as it tells the process of keeping an animal in your care. The author uses may words that can be found in nature as they tell this story. The book in informative as well as fictional. The colorful vivid illustrations on each page keep your eyes moving all around as you find the many things present mentioned in the story. This story would be great for starting a unit on incest with a classroom of first graders.
The Child in the story wants to keep the salamander he...more
The Child in the story wants to keep the salamander he...more
The Salamander Room is another great example of an escaping reality text. The book is about a young boy who discovers a salamander and wants to keep it in his room. His mother is constantly asking him questions as to how exactly the things he plans out will work. The boy goes off on a tangent imagining the perfect room for his salamander. He includes boulders, bugs, birds to eat the bugs, trees, salamander friends, bullfrogs, and much more. With each addition, his mother is right there to ask an...more
The Salamander Room by Anne Mazer tells the story of Brian, a young boy who finds a salamander in the woods. He imagines all the things he would do for his salamander if he were to take him home. His mother asks all the questions, such as, "They will be hungry. How will you feed them?" Brian responds, "I will bring insects to live in my room. And every day I will catch some and feed the salamanders." The story continues like this, and you can just imagine Brian's room becoming a paradise for his...more
Feb 13, 2011
Lisa Vegan
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
nature lovers; fans of beautiful pictures; to teach about habitats; just for fun for boys & girls
Recommended to Lisa by:
Abigail, Melody, Chandra, Kathryn, Lee
Ha! My adult mind had me befuddled. I was expecting a different ending, and perhaps I’d have preferred a different ending. Yet, this book is practically perfect in every way.
A young boy finds a salamander in the wild and wants to keep him. He has answers to every question posed to him by his mother about how he will create the perfect environment for the salamander, and for himself too. The story does a good job of showing the interconnectedness of various animal and plant life in an ecosystem....more
A young boy finds a salamander in the wild and wants to keep him. He has answers to every question posed to him by his mother about how he will create the perfect environment for the salamander, and for himself too. The story does a good job of showing the interconnectedness of various animal and plant life in an ecosystem....more
9 likes · like · see review
Oct 28, 2009
Elizabeth McDonald
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
parents, teachers, children-at-heart
Brian finds a salamander in the woods and brings it home. When his mother asks how he will give the creature what it needs, he envisions transforming his bedroom, step by step, into a salamander paradise. The illustrations in this short picture book immerse the reader and make her long for a salamander room herself. Mazer's writing hints of poetry without becoming overly flowery: "The rain will come through the open roof, and the sun, too. And vines will creep up the walls of my room, and ferns...more
I really liked this book. I have never read it before and even though it is a children's book, I was really engaged and enjoyed it! I loved how imaginative the child was. It was as if the mom was being realistic and the child knew all the answers to have the perfect solution, but the mom never discouraged him. By the end of the story, the boy had created the same habitat he had found the salamander in. The pictures were vivid and the written literature really enhanced the story by using a lot of...more
Sep 10, 2012
Megan Moore
added it
The Salamander room is a really fun and interesting fantasy book because it tells a story that is not very common or many people think of off the top of their head. It is a perfect book for kids because it is about another young child finds a salamander and takes it home and wants to turn his home into the salamanders home as well. Young kids love learning about animals and bugs and insects so this book includes that in the main story plot. This book allows children to use their imagination and...more
Such a beautiful book! I can see why so many people love this one. I would use this book during a science lesson on ecosystems since it does a wonderful job of showing how one animal could effect the system as a whole. It would also work well prior to a field trip to a nature center or going on a nature walk around the school to discuss how the kids should take only memories. I feel like you could also use the book to discuss pets, particularly how to choose a good pet and how to truly care for...more
The Salamander Room is a story about a little boy named Brian who decides that he wants to keep a salamander in his room. The salamander moves into the boy’s bedroom with a frog, crickets, some leaves and moss and ends up taking over his whole room. Brian eventually ends up sleeping outside with his salamander. Brian’s mother skillful asks him classic “mom” questions which he always has an answer for. The pictures and writing in this book are magnificent and nothing is overdone.
Excellent book to teach children that special accommodations or changes must be made in life for our friends, families, and pets. I think I can use this book to communicate social-emotional skills to children who are having hard time accepting a new family member, classmate, or any other individual. After reading the book, together we can come up with ways we can create the perfect “room” or effort of acceptance for their new friend to grow, play, and be loved in.
This book was so sweet. It is about a boy who finds a salamander and wants it to live in his with him. When he brings it home, his mother asks how he is going to make his room a suitable living space for the salamander. The boy then goes on to explain to his mother how he would transform his room all for the little salamander. The imagination and care that the little boy has for the salamander is so endearing and made reading the book very enjoyable.
Sep 07, 2012
Allyn Backus
added it
This is a very cute story, because it is exactly how any child would explain to a mom how they are going to care for their pet salamanders. It shows kids to use their imaginations, and to use knowledge of what pet care actually requires. The boy in the story transforms his room into a forest to accommodate his new pet, and many children love to imagine that that could be their room too. The story is nicely written for more skilled readers (grades K/1/2).
The illustrations were beautiful. It started out with single paged bordered drawings. AS teh details of his imagination grew, so did the illustrations. They were partial full bleed and then full bleeds. The story of his room changing into another place is something that all children will enjoy because they can connect. Brian, the main character, was so caught up in his own additions to the story as to how this dream of his is so doable.
This book was about a boy who finds a salamander and brings it home with him. Throughout the whole story he is explaining to hios mother what he will do to make his room a good environment for the salamander to live in. This would be a good book to read to the children if ou are going to introduce a class pet into the room. It could also be read just to talk about how animals need to live in their natural environments.
A little boy wants to bring a salamander he found in his backyard home, however doesn't have a great envrionment for it to live. The more he discribes what he is going to add to his room to make the creature comfortable, the more his room becomes the salamander's natural environment. It is a wonderful story to help children learn about animals and the importance of perserving their homes.
This reminds me of the "Where the wild things are", the room turning into the place the boy needs it to be. I liked the artwork that is showcased on the pages. I found the story of the character who had the answer for all that was asked to be very imaginative. Most kids have this ability, but do not always use it. I would most definatly use this in my classroom.
This book is great for reaching about nature and animals. A young boy wants to have a per salamander essentially, but he doesn't think about the salamander needs such as food and shelter. It really dives into animals basic needs and how one would have to alter a human environment to satisfy an animals needs. It makes the reader look beyond just having a pet.
Great book for children to use their imagination. This book addresses environmental issues in a way that kids can understand. It also addresses that not every animal can or should be kept as a pet. Very informational, yet keeps kids engaged and thinking about what is going on in the environment. This would definitely be a book to add to a classroom library.
This book was about a boy who finds a salamander and keeps it as a pet in his own room. The more he tried to create the salamanders natural habitat, the more it started fitting with the salamanders needs. I like this book because this is what teachers try to do, create a classroom environment to fit the students needs, to make the environment more kid friendly.
I LOVED this book! The mother walks through with the child as to what a salamander needs to survive. It also goes through how other animals are involved and their part in helping the salamander environment. A great example of the living environments of salamanders, why they need to live outdoors instead of a cage, and how the animals effect each other.
May 28, 2009
Kelley
added it
This is one of those super important childhood books... We did a huge unit on it in 1st grade, I think, that involved a lot of learning about salamanders and a large art project. I don't know why I thought of it today, but I did read it, so I thought I'd add it to my books. It is a lovely story, and I especially remember the amazing illustrations.
Here's another beautifully illustrated childrens book. I love the story as well- don't want to give it away- but it has been checked out from the library so many times, I'm suprised they don't just house it at our place. It is one of my 2 year olds favorites. She likes to find the critters on each page, so it can be an educational excercise too.
This simple conversation book between mother and son about how this boy would take care of a salamander he brings to his room was unexpectedly enchanting for my 7 yr old.
Lush illustrations allow you to see right into this boy's head which is lead by imagination and not barred by the gently questioning of his mother's practicality.
Lush illustrations allow you to see right into this boy's head which is lead by imagination and not barred by the gently questioning of his mother's practicality.
This is a great book for teaching visualization. It is about a boy who brings home a salamander and imagines all the things he will do to his room to make the salamander more comfortable. The writing is very descriptive. I used this book in a kindergarten visualization lesson. The students really enjoyed the story.
This is a good story to read to students when discussing determination and environment. The little boy in this story was more than determine to get the pet salamander to live in his room. He was willing to change things around so that his room would become the perfect place for the salamander to live.
A boy finds a salamander outside of his house. He tries to find things that would make it happy. He ends up imagining how his room would look with an open sky and trees growing. I think this would be a good book to introduce an environment unit on. The children can learn what an animal needs to survive.
This book is about a boy who has a pet salamander. He tried to change his room so that his pet could be more comfortable. His room ends up being more of an natural environment for the salamander and not the boy. This book would show a class that you need to be yourself and not someone else.
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Quite a lot of Anne Mazer’s writing education took place while she was unconscious. Her parents wanted desperately to become writers and made themselves get up at 4:00 a.m. Every morning in order to have writing time before their three young children awoke. The first thing Anne heard every day was two big, noisy electric typewriters. The furious sound of typing was her childhood wake-up music. Dur...more
More about Anne Mazer...
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