Gregory's Shadow

I just know what you are thinking....just where can you put ANOTHER great book about Groundhog's Day ( why do people say Groundhog Day no s?) with your fully stocked rodent collection now blooming over into the varmits books corner. A conundrum to be sure. And it is true the first 15 groundhog books are the very dearest, but eek out a bit of space for Gregory. He's a late bloomer. He's also a rather cute little chalk fellow, drawn beautifully by the guy who brought us that bear we all loved Corduroy. Darn that Corduroy because of him 15 years of my early life involved checking the dryer before my mom ran it for fear of a stuffed animal suffocation. ( I had to give up some of my friends when I got married to shelves over this same issue ;-(... Oh yeah the review, always the review. Gregory takes his shadow, befriends him, talks to him, then when frightened leaves him out in the cold. Oh no. And the rest is history. A very good book for separation of truth and fiction. (Or separation anxiety.) We ask the kids.... "Can groundhogs talk?" "Can shadows talk?" "Can shadows go around minus what casts them?" Keep in mind you might get a variety of answers, kookie ones, not just because they are six. I once asked in a Book club reading on a Zacharia Stitchen book if anyone there really thought aliens actually came to Earth and surgically altered apes and then had to deal with over 25 people who went on to tell me about their own abductions. Never assume I say! But generally groundhogs in my woods are mutes, and our shadows stay attached. Come on now. So I find the book a soft hearted sweet story. What I did today after reading to my 1st grade class was march us all out with partners and colored chalks to a playground to trace our shadows, draw in our clothes on the outlines, and in twenty minutes see how far the shadow had "moved" as we started to "realize" that something is "going on." Children provided various "ideas" until one suggested the Earth was actually rotating or moving. More science observations to be made.WWe might be on to something. A quaint story for a groundhog day. Oh and just to give my credentials my parents married on this day and lasted in that marriage 28 years. Not a record but at least they got out with their shadows.

Skittish little Gregory Groundhog is used to having his Shadow follow him all the time, everywhere he goes. But on February 1st when Gregory ran back inside his house, he and his Shadow got separated. Each one searched for the other, and eventually they get together again, just in time for Groundhog Day. Gregory coaxed Shadow to hide closely behind him, unseen, so that winter would be soon over. This story is an interesting approach to Groundhog Day. The chalk illustrations lend texture to the pages, and even shadows -- an important part of the story -- are well portrayed. See my Listmania list for other recommendations on this topic.

Gregory is a groundhog who loses his shadow. He and his shadow finally find each other and make a plan for Groundhog Day.This was a little too wordy for my class. I also think this is too abstract for the Three Year Olds I teach. They need to see the shadow stay to learn reality; the fantasy of the shadow and groundhog being separated just didn't make sense to them. But they liked the illustrations and played "catch the shadow"; a game they invented after the story time.Would be very good for Older Fours and Kindergarten age; especially ones in a good early learning program.