Little Land written and illustrated by Diana Sudyka is a visually fascinating picture book that looks at the beautiful earth both as it was, and it is now.
An early illustration depicts the situation five hundred million years ago when life was found in the watery depths. Right under that picture is a look at the land some sixty-seven million years ago when dinosaurs roamed about. And under that picture is yet a third illustration that shows the land one hundred thousand years ago when it was covered by ice. This unusual spread will grab the young reader’s interest.
The author makes it clear that “Change was ever present, but one thing remained consent: the land provided for all the life that lived upon it.” The illustrations show the soil bringing nutrients, the flowers bringing nectar and the rivers bringing fish. And when storms and fires would come “eventually life and land would find a way to begin anew.”
Throughout this book there are delightful watercolors of bees, butterflies, birds, dinosaurs, woolly mammoths, bison, homo sapiens and oak trees. The illustration of the homo sapiens with a baby in hand and a wolfdog by their side is storytelling by illustration at its best.
However, the coming of great populations, houses, factories, cars, and buildings turns everything upside down. The illustrations here are cleverly placed upside down on the pages. With work by all, the little land corrects its situation.
Little Land written and illustrated by Diana Sudyka is an impressive call to action for us all. This picture book is designed for children 4-8 years of age and up but will also speak to parents and teachers (Little, Brown and Company) 2023.
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Activity Questions for Little Land
Younger Children: Go to the first double spread illustration and find the following: a snail, a frog, two waterlilies, a rabbit, two butterflies, four bees, a turtle, a worm, and one magnificent yellow headed black bird.
Older Children: Look through the illustrations and find a woolly mammoth and a bison. They are both listed in the back material in the order of their appearance in the illustrations. Pictures of both are also available online. Then draw your own picture of one of these animals and give the animal a clever name that relates to how it looks.
How do the children in this book take care of their little land? Make a list. How do you take care of your little land? Keep a list of your good work.
