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Parrots Over Puerto Rico
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Above the treetops of Puerto Rico flies a flock of parrots as green as their island home. . . . These are Puerto Rican parrots. They lived on this island for millions of years, and then they nearly vanished from the earth forever.
Puerto Rican parrots, once abundant, came perilously close to extinction in the 1960s due to centuries of foreign exploration and occupation, de ...more
Puerto Rican parrots, once abundant, came perilously close to extinction in the 1960s due to centuries of foreign exploration and occupation, de ...more
Hardcover, 48 pages
Published
October 20th 2013
by Lee & Low
(first published September 1st 2013)
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Community Reviews
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Start your review of Parrots Over Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico has been invariably proclaimed our tenth favorite island within this vast world for years on end - being originally from Hawai’i Nei, we’ve always felt at home within the island's tropical land & heartwarming Afro-Caribbean culture that is similar to our own as Kama’aina...
From dancing bachata con mi reina on the beautiful beaches en Vieques to kayaking in the bioluminescent waters together upon our return from Iraq more than seven years ago...
To our first visit as a complete family ...more
From dancing bachata con mi reina on the beautiful beaches en Vieques to kayaking in the bioluminescent waters together upon our return from Iraq more than seven years ago...
To our first visit as a complete family ...more
Excellent. Beautiful history of Puerto Rico told through the lens of an endangered species. Geography, history, science, art - beautiful art made from paper cutting techniques - highly recommended for teachers, homeschool families, everyone.
One of my perpetual concerns is how we help children understand the complicated interrelated ways of wildlife and people, especially when it comes to endangered animals. My longtime experience in a school is that too often animals in places where lives are significantly different from those of my students are attended to at the expense of the people. That is, I fear that they will inadvertently develop a negative view of the people native to an area where animals are in danger rather than develo
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This exceptional nonfiction picture book tells the story of the Puerto Rican parrot. It is a bird that has flown over Puerto Rico for millions of years but almost became extinct in the 1960s. The book tells of the changes that came to Puerto Rico and its environment thanks to settlers, wars, hunting, and foreign invasive species. Forests began to disappear too, so the parrots were limited to living in just one place. By 1967, only 24 parrots lived in Puerto Rico. With them almost extinct, people
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Aug 18, 2021
June
rated it
really liked it
Recommends it for:
bird and endangered species requests
Recommended to June by:
Joan and Nancy Kotkin
The story of Puerto Rico told through the only native parrot of the United States and its territories. How the colony went from over 100,000 to 1 million to only 13 parrots left in the rain forest and the massive effort and dedication that has gone into trying to save these rare parrots.
The parrots that are really in the trees in Puerto Rico have been there for years. Way back in history, everyone takes care of them and respects them. The color illustrations are collage and the colors are so vividly bright, then when you get to the end, reading all these different historical facts about the parrots, there are real photographs of the Parrots and how they are taken care of.
The book has a fun twist as you open the front cover.
The book has a fun twist as you open the front cover.
1) This book tells about how parrots were very abundant in Puerto Rico before the first settlers some 5,000 years ago, and these two authors tell about the discovery in 1975 of only 13 of these parrots are still living in the same place in Puerto Rico in the wild. The two authors go on to tell the threats the parrots have faced through all of the deforestation being done throughout their land through development on the land, foreign exploration, and simply destroying their habitat. However, the
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I loved this book--I can see why it won the Sibert Award this year! Well-deserved, Susan Roth and Cindy Trumbore! Some of its reviewers (including some of my friends in Goodreads!) objected to the unusual orientation of the book, and I found it slightly awkward at first, but after thinking about it for about 5 seconds I realize why they did it: the artist has much more room to convey the space of the sky and later the forest which the parrots inhabit. Puerto Rican parrots are among the most enda
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What a uniquely illustrated book! This picture book was awarded the Sibert Medal (2014) and Américas Award (2014). I found this book on the Sibert Medal Award page and then went to the Geneva Public Library and was able to check it out from there. I believe this book would be best for ages 8-11. The major themes that I witnessed while reading this book were deforestation, endangerment, environment, and Puerto Rico. This book discusses Puerto Rico's history and the once abundant Puerto Rican parr
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"Parrots Over Puerto Rico" was an extremely engaging book with colorful, magnificent illustrations that would captivate any audience. This book walks through the development of what is now Puerto Rico. It discusses the people that have lived on this land and the events that have taken place, but it also discusses the beautiful parrots that have lived in the trees. These birds were plentiful when settlers first came to the island. Then, there were many different events that made their numbers dec
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Parrots Over Puerto Rico is an informational text that uses colorful representations to portray the history of Puerto Rico. The bright illustrations combined with the brief excerpts of history made this book engaging and kept the reader wanting to learn more. The short brief paragraphs allows readers to focus on the content without getting overwhelmed with facts. I love the way Cindy Trimbore connected the lives of the parrots to the lives of the people that inhabited Puerto Rico. Overall, this
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Parrots Over Puerto Rico
(2013, October 1). School Library Journal. http://www.titlewave.com/search?SID=0...
Text Structure: Chronological Sequence
Fiction Twin Text: “Pirate Pete’s Talk Like a Pirate” by Kim Kennedy (2007)
Rationale: I took a more “light-hearted” approach to this twin text pairing. Parrots are an integral part of pirate folklore and “Pirate Pete’s Talk Like a Pirate” is a fun fiction book for kids as pirates are always a topic of interest. “Parrots Over Puerto Rico” provides a look ...more
(2013, October 1). School Library Journal. http://www.titlewave.com/search?SID=0...
Text Structure: Chronological Sequence
Fiction Twin Text: “Pirate Pete’s Talk Like a Pirate” by Kim Kennedy (2007)
Rationale: I took a more “light-hearted” approach to this twin text pairing. Parrots are an integral part of pirate folklore and “Pirate Pete’s Talk Like a Pirate” is a fun fiction book for kids as pirates are always a topic of interest. “Parrots Over Puerto Rico” provides a look ...more
I haven't seen a sideways book since Tadpole's Promise. I'm surprised more people don't do this. I realize it makes for a different kind of read-aloud, but a picturebook is just as easy to hold the tall way as the wide way. And the tall page gives a different kind of expansiveness that is appropriate for a book about birds, trees, and sky.
I'm not a great fanof the paper cutting art anymore. But it works well for feathers and leaves, so again, good choices.
The narrow sans-serif "Francois One fo ...more
I'm not a great fanof the paper cutting art anymore. But it works well for feathers and leaves, so again, good choices.
The narrow sans-serif "Francois One fo ...more
Text-to-self Connection: Parrots Over Puerto Rico
For the Americas Award winning book, Parrots Over Puerto Rico by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore, I did a text-to-self connection. This means that I made a connection from the book to myself. I am so happy for this assignment that it gave me the opportunity to find this book! My husband is Puerto Rican. He was born on the island and then moved to New York when he was two. The book is a history of Puerto Rico with a central focus on the Iguaca par ...more
For the Americas Award winning book, Parrots Over Puerto Rico by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore, I did a text-to-self connection. This means that I made a connection from the book to myself. I am so happy for this assignment that it gave me the opportunity to find this book! My husband is Puerto Rican. He was born on the island and then moved to New York when he was two. The book is a history of Puerto Rico with a central focus on the Iguaca par ...more
Feb 12, 2014
Joan
rated it
it was amazing
Recommends it for:
anyone who appreciates good bookmaking
Shelves:
enviromental,
history-general,
nonfiction,
read-in-2014,
sibert-winners-honors,
animals,
j-books
This is just gorgeous! I had one person who was convinced that actual feathers had been used for the book. It is all collage by Roth! Instead of the conventional layout the book turns sideways and opens from top to bottom, a method that really works in this book. This is two stories in one: it is a brief history of Puerto Rico and it is a history of the decline, then recovery of these wonderful parrots who cry Iguaca! Iguaca! The numbers were down to *13* in 1975 when scientists started to succe
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“Parrots Over Puerto Rico” by Susan L. Roth is a non-picture picture book for children. This book is about the history of the parrots and how they became an endangered species. Within the story of the parrots, there is the story of Puerto Rico’s history. For children under four, I believe this book may be a bit to challenging. There are many dates and the book moves fast through the changes in people living in Puerto Rico. The mixed stories can make it difficult for children to follow. The autho
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Science/ Animal Science
Remembering: On what Island did the Parrots that the book discusses live on before becoming nearly extinct?
Understanding: How did the first group of people, the Tainos, treat the parrots? What happened to the Parrots?
Application: If you were a scientist placing an egg in the wild give me a few examples as to why you would only leave one egg?
Analysis: What relationships did the aviary parrots (captive born parrot) and the wild flock?
Evaluation: What challenges do scient ...more
Remembering: On what Island did the Parrots that the book discusses live on before becoming nearly extinct?
Understanding: How did the first group of people, the Tainos, treat the parrots? What happened to the Parrots?
Application: If you were a scientist placing an egg in the wild give me a few examples as to why you would only leave one egg?
Analysis: What relationships did the aviary parrots (captive born parrot) and the wild flock?
Evaluation: What challenges do scient ...more
Author Roth takes on the challenging role of intertwining the stories of the diminishing population of native parrots in Puerto Rico and the development of this commonwealth. There is a lot to tell on both sides and she is to be commended for bringing both stories to a text for juveniles. However, neither story gets a full account and the result is more text than is enjoyable for a picture book, but not enough to be a research resource. Illustrations by Susan L. Roth are wonderful, but hard to e
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Parrots Over Puerto Rico by Cindy Trumbore is a very informative book on the Puerto Rican parrots and their homes. It talks about how the parrots used to thrive in Puerto Rico and then when settlers moved in, the parrots were losing their homes, being hunted and trapped, and becoming extinct. Were humans causing the parrots extinction? Absolutely. The illustrations are from paper or felt cutouts, and they are amazing! Very informative. However, I would say this book is for 2nd grade and above fo
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I normally do not review children's books, as with three kids I read so many, but I found this book to be of exceptional interest. It is formatted differently, features beautiful, brightly colored illustrations and details both the history of Puerto Rican people as well as their endangered parrot. The parrots are beautiful and the story of their decline is a lesson in how people can so easily decimate the environment. I enjoyed this book immensely.
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I adore this book so much I should just buy my own copy. Why do I rate it 5 stars (for "this was amazing!")? 1) It uses the scientific BCE date unit, 2) I have a thing for the plight of endangered species, 3) it has great illustrations, and 4) the author is not afraid to use complex words and concepts.
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A fascinating, wonderful story of history and conservation, beautifully designed and illustrated.
I love what scientists did in the aviaries to save the parrot populations. The paper collages of the parrots and rainforest are so intricate and well done. A beautiful book!
A book that amazes the eyes with it's collage works of art on each page and tells an interesting story about Puerto Rico, their endangered parrots and the work to bring back their numbers.
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it was sad I almost cried!!!!!!!!!!!
This felt just as much like a book about Puerto Rico as it did a book about parrots. I did not know much about Puerto Rico. The illustrations were incredible.
Apr 25, 2016
Katie Dangle
added it
Title: Parrots Over Puerto Rico
Author: Cindy Trumbore & Susan L. Roth
Illustrator: Susan L. Roth
Genre: Robert F. Sibert Winner
Theme(s): Parrots, Puerto Rico, Extinction, Conservation, Nature, HIstory
Opening line/sentence: Above the treetops of Puerto Rico flies a flock of parrots as green as their island home.
Brief Book Summary: Parrots Over Puerto Rico takes the reader on an adventure as they discover the history of these precious birds that once flourished before they became threatened after t ...more
Author: Cindy Trumbore & Susan L. Roth
Illustrator: Susan L. Roth
Genre: Robert F. Sibert Winner
Theme(s): Parrots, Puerto Rico, Extinction, Conservation, Nature, HIstory
Opening line/sentence: Above the treetops of Puerto Rico flies a flock of parrots as green as their island home.
Brief Book Summary: Parrots Over Puerto Rico takes the reader on an adventure as they discover the history of these precious birds that once flourished before they became threatened after t ...more
Parrots Over Puerto Rico tells the story of the near-extinction of the Puerto Rican Parrots. The human causes as well as the wildlife and weather contributing factors are given, and the recovery efforts to re-build the numbers in the wild and in captivity. This book is an excellent opportunity to talk to students about environmental damage done by people and what it takes to try and reverse the damage done. It presents an opening to talk about colonization and uses Spanish words (and pronunciati
...more
2022 bk 117. While a children's book, there is much information packed into this small volume on the history and natural history of this island commonwealth. The story of how scientists and others worked to save an endangered species is fascinating. I do wish the author's could or would issue and updated version telling what has happened since Hurricane Maria. The book ends with hope - but since Hurricane Maria I don't know what has happened to their efforts.
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Parrots over Puerto Rico is an informational text appropriate for grades 1-6. A unique feature from the author is that this book does not only focus on the parrots. The author makes sure to talk about what is happening in the trees with the parrots, and what is happening on the ground with people.
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Susan L. Roth creates unique mixed-media collage illustrations that have appeared in numerous award-winning children’s books, many of which she also wrote. Her book, Listen to the Wind, spent a year on the New York Times best seller list. The Mangrove Tree, which was released in 2011 and addressed Dr. Gordon Sato's mangrove tree-planting project, was the winner of Jane Addams Children's Book Award
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