I recently revisited One Dark Bird by Liz Garton Scanlon as a mentor text for a short project I was working on. There are so many aspects about this book that make it a must have for aspiring writers, kids, parents, teachers. Please take a look. And for more picture book recommendations, visit Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog.

Title: One Dark Bird

Author: Liz Garton Scanlon

Illustrator: Frann Preston-Gannon

Publisher: Beach Lane Books, 2019

Audience: Ages 4-8

Themes: counting, birds, rhyme

Opening lines: 1 dark bird / perched way up high / a view of town / a taste of sky

Synopsis: Starlings appear one by one until they form a flock. When they sense a hawk nearby, the birds form a murmuration that flap and dance making lots of noise to scare away the danger.

Why I Like This Book:

• strong verbs (perched, divert)
• unexpected rhymes (by/multiply, cloud/crowd)
• matching beginning and ending verses
• front matter paragraph (as opposed to back matter)
• bright colors in the art that contrast to the dark bird

For an extensive list of wonderful picture books compiled from past Perfect Picture Book Fridays, please visit Susanna Leonard Hill’s Perfect Picture Books.