Module 5
February 15-21

Verdi
By Janell Cannon

Cannon, Janell. Verdi. 1997. Harcourt Brace & Company. ISBN: 0152010289

Synopsis:
Verdi is a little, yellow snake that wants to go fast and likes flying. His mother has told him to grow up and turn into a big, green snake, but big, green snakes seem lazy and rude to Verdi. Verdi decides to try to not turn green. Unfortunately, he hurts himself when he falls. The green snakes take Verdi and help him. Verdi learns that they used to like going fast and falling, but that they all had accidents like him. Verdi grows big and green, and he learns to appreciate how fun it is to stay still too. However, he also remembers how much fun it is to be young, and he is willing to still play with younger yellow snakes.

My View of the World:
This is a charming book for elementary students that teaches some important lessons. The first is that it is important to be yourself. The second is that it is everyone is different, and that is good. The pictures are beautiful, and Verdi is a character to which children will be able to relate. This book is definitely a winner.

Texas Bluebonnet Award, 1997.

Book Reviews:
Cannon (Trupp, 1995, etc.) strikes a fragile balance between fact and fiction in her presentation of Verdi, a very small, bright yellow python who does not want to grow up into the adult snakes he knows: green, boring, and rude. He tries to race off, wash off, and cover up all signs of his own encroaching green, until an accident forces him to slow down. He grows up big and green and slumbrously silent as he drapes on a branch in the tropical sun. When two very yellow, very small pythons chance upon him as he basks, they fidget and whisper and snicker; rather than be annoyed, Verdi recognizes that ``they're just like I used to be'' and offers to show them the fancy figure eight he perfected, with some mishap, as a youngster. He may be an adult, but he's still the same old Verdi, he thinks, rejoicing--a delightful, airy thought to leave with young readers. Once again, the author's acrylic and colored pencil full-page drawings are carefully observed, apt, and radiant. An afterword provides sufficient information on snakes to appease those in search of deeper knowledge. Kirkus Reviews, April 1, 1997.

Cannon (Stellaluna) is on a roll, her gift for creating memorable characters and scenes on glorious display in this tale of a feisty python hatchling. Vowing never to turn "lazy, boring, or green" like the older pythons, Verdi zips through the jungle, launching himself from tree branches in an attempt to outpace the inevitable and keep his bright yellow skin and sporty stripes. His elders fear Verdi's recklessness will be his undoing ("At this rate, he'll be lucky to make it to his first molt," bemoans one) and they watch his antics with alarm?nd with a drop of nostalgia for their own glory days. Adulthood eventually catches up with the young hothead, of course, but in a resolution that is both wise and funny, Verdi comes to terms with maturity while maintaining his zest for life ("I may be big and very green, but I'm still me!"). Cannon's finely tempered prose is as exquisite as her luminous artwork. Here, each jewellike vista is marked by careful attention to detail and brilliant use of color?erdi's jungle world is a symphony of green, from the delicate shade of a newly unfurled fern frond to richer tones of emerald and pine. Sharply focused foreground objects fade into slightly hazy backdrops, giving the acrylic-and-colored-pencil illustrations an almost three-dimensional depth. As a bonus, the book concludes with a graceful two-page note on snakes. Ages 4-10. Publishers Weekly, February 18, 1997.

In My World:
This book could easily be used to do more research on snakes in general. There is a reference section at the end of the book with factual information on snakes. This could also be used with a thematic unit on rainforests or conservation. This could also be used to address differences that students have with each other and possibly promote understanding. I would use this book as a read aloud to promote further research or conversation within the library.