Giraffe Meets Bird

PreS-Gr 1—When Giraffe and Bird first meet, they express a plethora of positive adjectives to describe their friendship, followed by several less favorable feelings when they both discover that establishing a relationship is not always easy. Giraffe is "surprised," "amazed," and "fascinated" to meet his small, newly hatched buddy until he soon finds it easy to become "cross" with him, and Bird, in turn, finds it a "cinch" to become "angry" with Giraffe. Communication and compromise continues to be touch and go until the moment that both unite to escape a common enemy: Lion. Then they set off together (along with three useful elephants) to find a new home to share. This is Bender's third installment about Giraffe and Bird, who always have something to squabble about but ultimately realize that they are still much better off together. Bender's warm, expressive acrylic illustrations well suit the pair's mercurial moods, from both animal's wide-eyed fascination to their grumpy glares. The lion that creeps up on the defenseless bird, as he sits unaware, innocently stares at his prey, minimizing the fear of younger readers who may suspect a quick and perilous end to the smaller creature. With or without the pithy array of synonyms, the story's overall message is what leaves the biggest impression: relationships are hard work, requiring tolerance and understanding, but are well worth the effort.