Picturebooks Fiction

Ahlberg, Allan. Previously. Illus. Bruce Ingman. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick, 2007. ISBN 978-0-7636-3542-8. $16.99 U.S./ $21.00 CAN. Ages 6 and up.
www.candlewick.com

Previously is a picture book for those who enjoy back-stories and alternative viewpoints like Gregory Maguire’s novel Wicked. Ahlberg’s book isn’t as detailed as a novel, but it still sparks the imagination. How did those fairy-tale characters get to where they are now? This author weaves quirky fairy-tale back-stories that are all somehow interconnected. His subjects: Goldilocks, Jack and the beanstalk, Jack and Jill, the Frog Prince, Cinderella, and the Gingerbread Boy.

In spite of its playfulness they book seems to be saying something actually quite profound. At the end of the book we see that previously, before all those stories happened, each character was a baby, not that different from each other. How does that say something about our world, the real world? Before that man became a homeless alcoholic, before that woman became a drug addict, before that young man succumbed to mental illness and killed several people, before the woman became a prostitute, they were all lovable, perfect babies. Isn’t that something?

Bruce Ingman’s illustrations, done in acrylic are fun and whimsical. He uses thick brushstrokes, seemingly without outlines. Everything looks freehand, even the characters. There are no rigid lines, which fits the story since Ahlberg is doing something different form the standard fairy tale. Each illustration takes up two pages, and across the pages we see the characters at different points in time. Interestingly, none of the characters are painted very big. They’re small compared to their background, suggesting that all of them are part of a bigger story. On the last page we only see a distant, tiny figure holding an umbrella on a landscape under an enormous sky that spans from the sun to a rainbow to the moon to a rain cloud.

Deep.

Marie Soriano

Aiken, Joan. The Wooden Dragon. Illus. Bee Willey. London: Jonathan Cape-Random House Children’s Books, 2004. ISBN: 0-224-06480-0. $14.99.

This is a heart-warming tale of a child overcoming her loneliness and physical disability through caring for a hopeful wooden dragon. In The Wooden Dragon, Joan Aiken describes a brother and sister, Handle and Window, who live in a small cottage that is surrounded by a huge build up of fallen leaves every autumn. Handle is a sailor who takes care of his younger sister, Window, who can only walk “very slowly” because she had injured her leg by slipping on some fallen leaves when she was a little girl. When Handle has to go off to sea for an even longer voyage than normal, he carves a little wooden dragon to keep Window company. At first, Window misses her brother so much that she forgets all about the wooden dragon. Like the velveteen rabbit, the lonely wooden dragon cries. However, in a departure from Margery Williams’ The Velveteen Rabbit, in which the nursery magic Fairy turns the “old and worn out” toys into “Real” once the “children don’t need them anymore,” Window finally finds a friend in the wooden dragon just when she needs one most. Like a genie freed by the rubbing of a lamp, Window discovers just how helpful her brother’s gift could be once she rises from a dream of the dragon crying to finally rub the dust away, awakening the little wooden dragon. Window frees the wooden dragon from his immobility, and he likewise frees her from the leaves that have engulfed her home, allowing Window greater freedom of movement as well.

A delightful story about individuals finding ways to help others, hope, and companionship, The Wooden Dragon artfully combines Bee Willey’s highly colorful illustrations with Aiken’s imaginative prose. Willey’s whirling leaves, splashing waves, and striking colors vividly bring this tale to life.

Emily Moore

Allsburg, Chris van. The Stranger. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1986. ISBN-13: 9780395423318

This fall mood piece begins with Farmer Bailey driving in his car enjoying the change of the season from summer to fall, and as he is reflecting on this favorite season, he hits something with his car. He stops to find an unusual man, lying in the road. Farmer Bailey helps the man, but finds him unable to speak and with no memory. He takes him home, and the Bailey family cares for him, feeds and dresses him; they find him an odd but also pleasant character. He mimics their behavior and participates in the farm work. As the season turns into fall, the man suddenly and mysteriously disappears--mysterious like autumn--he comes in at the end of summer and leaves as fall does; over night, suddenly.

Van Allsburg's artwork is atmospheric and emotive; autumn images in full page spreads complement the tone of the story. The text is succinct, telling the story of summer turning to fall from a viewpoint of someone who has not experienced or seen it before. The layout of the book, with the marriage of text that is boxed on each full page spread, next to a full page spread illustration is a very formal arrangement that matches this quiet and beautiful book. Award winning Van Allsburg captures the mystery and mood of autumn through his expressive artwork and text.

JoAnn Jonas

Baryshnikov, Mikhail & Radunsky, Vladimir. Illus. Vladimir Radunsky. Because…. New York: Atheneum, 2007. ISBN 978-0-689-87582-3. $16.99

The protagonist of this charming tribute to the spirit of the artist has a problem. His grandmother refuses to act like a normal person. Whenever they’re out in public together she insists on capering about, alarming and amusing passers-by and frequently embarrassing her grandson. But whenever he (or anyone else) asks her why she leaps and rolls and gallops and twirls about, she only replies, “Because….”

Well, grandmother is a dancer born. And who would know the heart of a dancer better than Mikhail Baryshnikov? Here he teams up with award-winning author and illustrator Vladimir Radunsky to celebrate the passionate embrace of art. Both partners agree that if you share your unique expressive gifts with the world, it will make life a little richer and more fun. Their little story is a great morale-builder for artistes-in-training.

M. Janssen

Barton, Bob. Paul Gallico’s The Small Miracle. Illustrated by Carolyn Croll. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2003. ISBN 9-78-0-805-06745-3. $16.95. Ages 4 and up.

Pepino is a little boy who lives in a stable with no family. He only has his donkey Violetta. Violetta is everything to Pepino. Even though she is his pet, she is also his friend and family. The best thing about Violetta is that she always seems happy and smiley. Then one day she gets sick and she begins act downtrodden. Like any good friend, Pepino is devastated. He is willing to do anything to make sure Violetta gets better. When the doctor and home remedies cannot heal Violetta, Pepino goes to the priest. He knows Saint Francis will heal her. But in order to bring Violetta to the crypt of Saint Frances he must go on a whirlwind adventure to Rome to seek the permission of the Pope. In the end, Pepino’s love and devotion to Violetta, as well as his unwavering faith in God wins over the Pope, who first tells Pepino that it may be possible that God may want Violetta Himself because she is such a wonderful creature, but gives Pepino permission to take Violetta into the crypt. There is great hope for Pepino and Violetta, though.

Many children and even many adults have found great friendship and companionship in their pets, so many readers will be able to relate to Pepino’s woe when Violetta becomes ill. Pepino’s faith in God and his care for his donkey will touch the hearts of readers. It is a very moving and inspirational story. It is like so many stories of faith found in the Bible. It is no wonder that Bob Barton chose to retell it.

Croll’s illustrations are seemingly simple, but they portray the happiness and smiles of Violetta before she is sick, and Pepino’s devotion to this greatest of friends is also very apparent in the illustrations. The illustrations also give the story a sort of folktale appeal and makes it easier to imagine the simplicity of life for a young Italian stable boy.

I would be very interested in reading the original version of this story, but Bob Barton’s retelling does a wonderful job in telling this inspirational story of faith and also accepting that love and devotion can also mean saying goodbye.

Joyce Ho

Beaty, Andrea. Iggy Peck, Architect. Illus. David Roberts. New York: Abrams, 2007. ISBN 978-0-8109-1106-2. U.S. $15.95/ CAN. $18.95. Ages 6 and up.
www.andreabeaty.com

Iggy Peck is the story of a boy who loves building more than anything. At the age of two he builds a tower out of diapers and glue. (Euww!) His love for building grows, and he expresses it in very interesting ways, to his parents’ delight and, sometimes, dismay. However, second grade teacher Miss Lila Greer does not approve of Iggy’s love or his talent for building; she tries to squelch his dreams, insisting there’s no place in her classroom for building or architecture. Of course, second grade is terribly boring for Iggy after that. Then one day Miss Greer takes the class out for a picnic, and not long after crossing a bridge to a small island, the bridge collapses. Guess who saves the day?

Beaty writes in rhyming verse—an absolute hoot! Also, she creates a back story for Miss Lila Greer, giving readers insight into why she disapproves of Iggy’s love for building. This smartly written book speaks to the creativity in every person, young, old and in-between. While we may make a big deal about encouraging creativity in children, as soon as they express it in an unconventional way, once it is outside the box, it is labeled as wrong or bad. Beaty’s book is subversive and child-centered, giving kids agency and intellect. In this case, the child doesn’t change, but the adult does and for the better. Didacticism, usually aimed at children, is turned on its head!

The illustrations by David Roberts are geometric and uniform and hence, emotionally satisfying. With watercolors, pen, ink on Arches paper, pencil and graph paper Roberts creates illustrations that reflect Iggy’s love of architecture. But they are not just a bunch of shapes thrown together. On the contrary, Roberts is a meticulous artist, putting a lot of detail and life into every picture. For example, in one scene Iggy has built “churches and chapels from peaches and apples” (Beaty). The peaches and apples, respectively, are uniform in shape, yet with watercolors Roberts has made every single piece of fruit distinct. Here the beauty really is in the details. You should see what he does with Iggy’s classmates! It’s as if he spent hours carefully illustrating each child.

Marie Soriano

Blake, Quentin. Angel Pavement. London: Random House, 2004. ISBN-0-224-07027- 4 , 32 pages.

Corky and Loopy are quite a pair. Like all girls, they munch on chocolate biscuits, they scream at each other (“Shut your cakehole fishface”), but more than anything, this duo loves to draw. In fact, they love to draw so much that they will scour trash cans for people's leftover crayons and markers and will create on any scrap of paper they can get their hands on. The thing about Corky and Loopy. however, is that despite their perfectly normal girl-ness, they are actually unique in one very special way—Corky and Loopy are angels, and just like every good angel tag team, they bring wonder and magic into the lives of those who really do need it!

In Angel Pavement, the UK's first Children's Laureate, Quentin Blake, leads us on a wonderful ride with Sid Bunkin and his “simply angelic” special pencil. As always, Blake's illustrations have that unique quality which brought to life favorites such as Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Russell Hoban's How Tom beat Captain Najork, but here he plays with a new medium—a multicolored pencil—that adds a certain “divine” quality to his distinct style.

With just the right amount of quirky humor, and a wonderful statement on what happens when the imagination is let loose with a pencil: “When you start drawing you can never be quite sure what is going to happen next,” Blake has created a charming addition to his impressive list of children's books as both writer and illustrator. Great fun, now where did I put my pencils?

Ellen Nef

Bryan, Ashley. Let It Shine. New York: Atheneum, 2007. $16.99. ISBN 0689847327. Ages 4-8.

Illustrator Ashley Bryan has used three spirituals as the focus for his collage artwork to create a beautiful read aloud picture book. Beginning with This Little Light of Mine, each two page spread is splashed with bright colors, in collaged symbolic images. Candles, suns, stars, flashlights all emit light. Cars, plans, boats, bikes, and roller skates take us everywhere the light will shine. The words of the spiritual become the text, and can be read or sung. Oh When the Saints Go Marching In is the second spiritual featured; the children in the collage are joyfully singing the words, as they march through town and country. The final spiritual, He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands, has the boldest images of homes from all cultures, and natural images of water, plants, mountains and land from all over the earth embraced in large hands. Each spiritual also has the words and score at the end of the book, as well as notes from the author on the history of spirituals, as part of the oral tradition from slavery. These songs have been passed down since the Civil War times, and now are being celebrated as a special form of communication and history that is uniquely American.

This author was awarded the 2008 Coretta Scott King – Illustrator of the Year award for this book.

J. Jonas

Burningham, John. Edwardo: The Horriblest Boy in the Whole Wide World. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. ISBN 978-0-375-80453-1. $16.99.

From the pen and brush of author/artist John Burningham comes this cautionary tale about the power of labeling. Edwardo is just a normal boy with the normal complement of undesirable behaviors. But the adults in his life won’t let him forget any of them and in response he becomes exactly what they perceive him to be. Enter the horriblest boy in the whole wide world. Just when Edwardo’s reputation hits rock bottom, fate conspires to turn things around. Despite his worst intentions, people begin to misinterpret his behavior as well-meant. When he tosses water on the dog, he’s thanked by the owner for giving his dog a bath. Before long, he becomes the neighborhood pet sitter. Trait by trait and label by label, Edwardo is transformed by the perceptions of others into something quite different.

Burningham, twice winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal has also received four New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book of the Year awards. This latest addition to his canon maintains the originality and wit that his readers have come to expect. The accompanying watercolors are simple but vibrant with a lively line.

M. Janssen

Carter, David A. 600 Black Spots. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2007. ISBN 978-1- 4169-4092-0. $19.99

David Carter, creator of One Red Dot and Blue 2, returns with this eye-catching modern art pop-up book. The bold primary colors, extravagant abstract shapes and hidden tricks are guaranteed to keep children 3 years and up entertained for hours. It’s a hands-on experience, but handle with care. Younger readers should be supervised. The accompanying text amounts to little more than a title for each piece and a spot count. But the 10 pop-ups themselves are brilliant, evoking Mondrian and Matisse. It’s easy to get lost in this visual confection, especially if you start counting spots.

M. Janssen

Cepeda, Joe. The Swing. NY: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2006. ISBN 978-0439142601 $15.99 Hardcover. Picture book, 32 pages. Recommended age 4-8.

Josey's family drives her nuts! They don't clean their yard, they don't throw parties, and worst of all, they lose EVERYTHING! One day however, when her Dad makes a particular blunder in losing time to push her on the swing, Josey decides she can swing just fine by herself, and makes some discoveries as to what lurks in that big old oak tree!

Having won awards for books such as What a Truly Cool World, and Nappy Hair, Joe Cepeda now invites us into a world where a little girl starts to find everything she's been looking for and, in turn, unites a neighborhood. Cepeda's illustrations are ablaze with color, paint so thick you can see the brush strokes;,a style that lends dynamism and depth to pages already teeming with life. A fun story that kids will love as more and more discoveries are made in Josey's explorations into the leafy green world.

Ellen Nef

Chivus, Mitch. Fartsy Claus. Illus. Mike Reed. New York: HarperCollins, 2007. ISBN 978-0-06-089466-5. U.S. $16.99/ $21.50 CAN. Ages 3-7. www.fartsyclaus.com, www.mikereedillustration.com, www.authortracker.com

Mitch Chivus has retold ’Twas the Night Before Christmas with much more humor…and tooting.

It’s the night before Christmas and Santa comes down the chimney of one house to find franks and beans in place of cookies and milk. He likes his unusual treat so much that he finishes the bowl and goes to find seconds in the kitchen.

But his evening snack causes a horrible, noxious flatulence. Santa’s farts are so loud that the children in one house are awakened. Michael and Ariana go downstairs to find Santa farting uncontrollably. The brother and sister try to help him find relief but to no avail. In despair, Santa decides to return to the North Pole.

However, the scent of St. Nick’s flatulence has made the reindeer ill, leaving him stranded. Fortunately, Ariana and Michael come to the rescue, taking Santa to their science lab in the attic. There they create long-johns with a funnel and engine, thus enabling Santa to power the sleigh with his farts to save Christmas.

Mitch Chivus has written a funny and cute story involving flatulence without being tacky. The book is written in rhyme, like the original ’Twas the Night Before Christmas. Rhyme gets dismissed as childish and trite by some, but it actually takes skill and thought, especially if you want your rhymes to work well. (Consider the fact that Shakespeare wrote poetry in iambic pentameter—rhyme!)

Mike Reed’s illustrations are bright and textured and have a lot of movement. While the humor might be a bit gross, the pictures are not. In contrast to the grotesque-looking characters and carnivalesque colored illustrations done by Audrey Colman for Walter the Farting Dog, the pictures by Reed are rather cute. Despite his flatulence, Santa looks clean and fresh in his traditional ensemble and rosy cheeks. The kids are nice-looking in a very white-middle class sort of way. Most importantly, the illustrations depict Chivus’s story faithfully, down to the franks and beans, science lab in the attic, and sick reindeer.

Marie Soriano

Clark, Emma Chichester. Will and Squill. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, 2006. ISBN 9781575059365. $15.95. Ages 3 and up.

This is a simple story about a boy named Will and his friend, a squirrel named Squill. They are the best of friends. Even though one is a boy and one is a squirrel, they do everything together. Unfortunately, Will’s parents think Squill is a dirty squirrel and Squill’s parents think Will is a dirty boy. But nothing they do seems to keep the two of them apart. Then one day Will’s parents bring him a kitten. Will is excited and begins to pay more attention to the kitten than to Squill. It seems like it could be the end of Will and Squill. Will their friendship survive?

The story is simple. It would be good for young children who are into rhyming. Every line of the story is based on the rhyming of Will and Squill’s names. Squill even always replaces the word “will” with “squill.” Of course, underlying the silly rhyming is the story of Will and Squill’s friendship, but even that seems to be overshadowed when compared to the rhyming.

The story also portrays childhood and certain stereotypical differences in how little boys and girls play though how Will and Squill love to be rambunctious while a neighbor girl likes to play more quietly with her dolls. This gender portrayal is also seen in the kitten Will’s parents give him. The kitten is obviously a girl; she wears a pink ribbon around her neck and her only desire is to do nothing but sleep. It contrasts against the wild activeness of Will and Squill.

The illustrations are fun and really go along with the book. They are bright and colorful watercolors that play along with the silliness of the story. Some children would enjoy the book, but personally I found the rhyming names got repetitive and tedious.

Joyce Ho

De la Paz, Myrna J. Abadeha: The Philippine Cinderella. Illus. Youshan Tang. Walnut Creek, Ca: Shen’s Books, 2001. ISBN 1-885008-17-1. $16.95. Ages 7 and up.

Myrna J. de la Paz adapted this story from Filipino folklore. This is a very different, and possibly darker, version of Cinderella. This takes place in the Philippines, way back when the indigenous people had not been touched by Christianity or imperialism. Forget the glass slipper.

The folktale unfolds just as we would expect it to. When Abadeha’s mother dies, her father remarries a cruel woman with two wicked daughters. The new wife is determined to make Abadeha miserable, and she gets her chance when Abadeha’s fisherman father leaves on a long fishing trip. She uses Abadeha as a workhorse to do all the cooking, cleaning and serving.

This is where the story really gets interesting. The stepmother gives Abadeha two impossible tasks. Desperate for help, the girl goes out to the river bank where she prays to her mother, the Creator of the Earth and the spirits of her ancestors. Who should appear but the Spirit of the Forest. The stepmother becomes so upset when Abadeha returns having successfully completed the tasks that she kills the girl’s pet bird. Then Abadeha goes to the Spirit of the Forest for help once again. This time she is told to bury the bird’s feet at her mother’s grave, and after the rainy season, Abadeha goes back to find a tree covered in jewels has grown there. One day the son of a chieftain finds the tree and, praying to the Spirit, takes a ring. When he puts it on his finger, the appendage swells. Who is the only one who can remove the enchanted ring? You guessed it!

De la Paz has written a compelling version of Cinderella, and Youshan Tang has illustrated the story with beautiful, vibrant watercolors. They show the characters in old, traditional garb and often a bit of the landscape, particularly the riverbed where Abadeha goes to pray to the Spirit of the Forest.

This is a great chance for Filipino/a kids to see themselves in a text. I think most children’s books portray Chinese or Japanese children, and Asians are often lumped together in one group without any real regard for the different cultures that make up Asia. We’re talking Filipino, Chinese, Korean, Indian, Taiwanese, Japanese, etc. This would be a great resource for teachers in promoting multiculturalism.

Marie Soriano

DiCamillo, Kate. Great Joy. Illust. Bagram Ibatoulline. Cambridge: Candlewick Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-7636-2920-5. $16.95. Ages 4-8.

Young Frances looks out her window the week before Christmas at a monkey, who holds out a tin cup as an organ grinder plays his sad, dream-like songs. Frances wonders where the organ grinder and the monkey go at night, and stays awake in order to find out. When she looks out her window at midnight, she sees them huddled against a building in the snow. The next morning at breakfast, Frances asks her mother if they can invite the organ grinder and the monkey to dinner, but her mother says no, because they’re strangers. As the snow builds up outside, Frances and her mother make their way to the church for the Christmas pageant, in which Frances plays an angel with one very significant line. On the way to church, Frances invites the organ grinder and his monkey to the pageant. Frances hurries on stage, but she cannot say her line, and can think only of the organ grinder with his sad eyes outside in the cold. When the sanctuary door opens, and the organ grinder and the monkey enter the church, Frances proclaims a very special message.

Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo’s heart-warming prose is gorgeously complemented by Bagram Ibatoulline’s inspiring illustrations depicting realistic scenes in WWII-era America, overlaid with a hazy glow of wonder.
Great Joy is a touchingly beautiful story of a little girl who brings “tiding of Great Joy” to a homeless organ grinder and his monkey by showing them the simple kindness that can often be bypassed in the hectic grind of day-to-day life. This wonderful selection imparts the joy of Christmas through the eyes of a child whose generous compassion reminds us all to be kind to strangers in need.

Great Joy is a highly recommended Christmas picture book that will bring tears of joy to readers’ eyes.

Emily Moore

Dunn, Phoebe, photographer; Text by Judy Dunn Spangenburg. A Big Treasury of Little Animals. New York: Random House, 2007 reprint of 6 separate books. ISBN 978-0-375-84177-4. $10.99. Hardback.

If you have a small child in your home, buy this book. If you yourself like looking at gorgeous pictures of little animals being loved by children, buy this book. I seldom use the word “cute,” but within the covers of this 6-story collection by the renowned photographer Phoebe Dunn are richly-colorful and expressive pictures of a kitten, a duck, a puppy, a bunny, a lamb, and a piglet in meadows of flower-filled green grass that are the essence of “cute.” Shown in their babyhood and growing-to-maturity months, these little innocent beings under blue skies held lovingly by little (all white) children are medicine for a complicated world.
I knew of The Little Duck; it was a book frequently read in my home. I was delighted to discover this collection with its additional stories, clearly and well devised by Dunn’s daughter. If I were a defacer of books, I’d cut out two consectivepictures and hang them up to make me smile: the one of the kitten followed by the bunny-under-a-mushroom that follows the kitten photo; both are on the left hand side of the kitten story in this unnumbered-page book.

A. Allison

Fellowes, Julian. The Curious Adventures of the Abandoned Toys. Illust. S.D. Schindler. New York: Henry Holt and Company , LLC., 2007. ISBN: 0-8050-7526-7. $17.95.

Julian Fellowes’s The Curious Adventures of the Abandoned Toys is a delightful story of toys finding a new home, and a new way of life, after being abandoned. Fellowes opens with the tale of Doc, a teddy bear who lives in a children’s hospital. When Doc finds himself discarded, he meets other abandoned toys who live at a garbage dump, (bringing to mind Russell Hoban’s A Mouse and His Child, whose characters also find their home after living in the town dump). Doc befriends two other teddy bears, a one-eyed owl, and a porcelain doll. The toys, with the help of Doc’s medical knowledge, use teamwork to help an injured blackbird. Later, when a stuffed rabbit named Augustus arrives at the dump by accident, the toys again work together, this time in trying to restore Augustus to his child.

Schindler’s highly-textured illustrations faithfully portray Fellowes’ characters and scenes and wonderfully complement the author’s engaging prose. This lovely picture book explores the notions of teamwork, compassion, and friendship between individuals from diverse backgrounds. Recommended for anyone who has ever wondered what happens to toys after they have been lost, or thrown away.

Emily Moore

Fleischman, Paul. The Animal Hedge. Illust. Bagram Ibatoulline. Cambridge: Candlewick, 2003. ISBN 9-78-0-763-61606-9. $16.99. Ages 4 and up.

A poor farmer and his three sons love the animals and the farm that they live on. Then trouble hits the family when it refuses to rain. With no other means of survival, the farmer has no choice but to sell off his animals and farm and move to a small cottage surrounded by a hedge. The farmer and his sons have nothing left and no money to build a new life, so the sons must leave to seek their fortunes. But the sons do not know what their ambitions are. Then the farmer starts seeing images of his beloved animals in the hedge surrounding the cottage. He guides his sons into seeing what they love in the hedge; then they are able to pursue their dreams and live happy lives.

The Animal Hedge is a heartwarming story about using something as commonplace as a hedge to find your heart’s desire. Fleischman first published this story in 1983 and it was such an uplifting story that it has been republished and reinterpreted by illustrator Bagram Ibatoulline. Ibatoulline’s illustrations are beautiful. His use of framing makes the story look as though it has been preserved onto decorative plates. He really captures the vastness of the land and the plentitude of animals and crops when the farmer still is living on his farm. He also portrays the loneliness of the cottage surrounded by the hedge well. The colors are very rich and vivid—the artist even uses the hedge to portray the mood of the story. When the farmer is unhappy, the hedge looks dark and foreboding, but when the farmer is happy, the hedge looks brighter and is covered in flowers.

The Animal Hedge is a sweet story. I would recommend it to any child and will probably read it to my own one day. After reading it, children will be sure to be look at hedges in a whole new way.

Joyce Ho

French, Jackie. Josephine Wants to Dance. Illus. Bruce Whatley. New York: Abrams, 2006. $15.95. ISBN 978-8109-9431-3.

As delightful as the Australian author French’s earlier book Diary of a Wombat, this new book will make you smile; it’s reminiscent of another delightful book, Duncan the Dancing Duck. In both books, the dancing animal woos the human crowd. In French’s funny text, Josephine the kangaroo is a natural ballerina; she loves to leap and learns from emus and eagles how to be even more balletic. When the professional ballet comes to town, its prima ballerinas get their ankles in a twist. Oh, dear—what will happen? It’s Josephine to the rescue, bounding onto the stage in a pink tutu and ballet shoes. The font sizes vary enticingly as problems compound—until the lovely kangaroo wins over the audience (and the skeptical other dancers), curtseying “like the brolgas bowing to the sun.” Pretty soon the audience is out of their seats and joining Josephine on stage.

Ah, what a lovely story. And the artwork by Whatley is utterly charming with a beautiful sense of movement. If there were such a thing as a ballerina/kangaroo, Whatley has captured her style, her grace, her joie de vivre, and passed the latter onto the book’s readers.

A. Allison

Grey, Mini. The Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. ISBN 0-375-83691-8. $16.95.

The Hey Diddle Diddle nursery rhyme first appeared in print in 1765. Since then various theories have been put forth to explain its hidden significance from Elizabethan satire to astronomy lesson. Now, author and illustrator Mini Grey takes us one step further, providing readers with a rollicking spoon’s-eye view of what happened when dish and spoon ran off together.

Floating across the ocean to twentieth-century America, dish and spoon establish a successful vaudeville act but overspend and wind up robbing a bank. It’s not long before they’re nabbed by the authorities, separated, and deported to England in disgrace. After serving a lengthy prison term, the grieving spoon wanders into an old junk shop where he is reunited with his long lost companion. Together the two put together a new act and embark on yet another round of footloose adventures.

Whimsy piled on whimsy fuels this imaginative tale. The illustrations provide a wealth of comic visual asides that enhance the hilarity of the text. Readers may also enjoy Grey’s Traction Man is Here! which won the 2005 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for picture books.

M. Janssen

Hicks, Barbara Jean. The Secret Life of Walter Kitty. Illus. Dan Santat. New York: Knopf, 2007. ISBN 978-0-375-83196. $16.99 U.S./ $22.99 CAN. Ages 7-10.
www.barbarajeanhicks.com, www.dantat.com

Walter Kitty has a rich inner life. When he’s not annoying his owners, Mr. and Mrs. Biddle, or getting in trouble or sniffing catnip, he has daydreams as his alter ego Fang.

In his imagination, he rescues his owners from pirates, roars on top of the Empire State Building like King Kong, and has an Indiana Jones adventure.

But maybe life with the owners isn’t so bad after all. Despite their complaints about Wally being a trouble maker, they love him to pieces. You can tell from the endearments Mrs. Biddle, whom he thinks of as “his Person,” gives him: “kitten” (which he isn’t anymore), “snookums” (heh heh), and “baby” (how sweet!).

Dan Santat uses mixed media: ink acrylic and photo-shop. The colors are darks, pastels and neutrals. The illustrations take over the whole page so you feel like you’re inside the book—and Walter Kitty’s mind. The characters have a cartoonish quality. But unlike annoying, wise- cracking cats like Garfield and Heathcliff, Walter has a softer quality and a sweet face. He has the “I’m so cute and yet so mischievous” face.

Both Hicks and Santat capture cats’ personalities so well. I’m not sure kids would understand the humor in the relationship between Walter and his owners. Adult readers who have cats are sure to laugh out loud at the truth in Hicks’ portrayal of the relationship. I’m not sure who will like The Secret Life of Walter Kitty more, adults or children?

Marie Soriano

Isaacs, Anne. Pancakes for Supper! Illus. Mark Teague. New York: Scholastic, 2006. ISBN 0-439-64483-6. $15.99 U.S./ $21.99 CAN. Ages 7 and up.

In the Wild West or perhaps on the prairies, Toby and her parents are traveling in their wagon and as she rides in the back the girl sings proudly of her colorful clothes: a blue coat with purple lining, a yellow sweater lined with green leaves, orange mittens and a matching cap, buck hide boots, red long johns, and finally, a brown dress. Whoa, that’s a lot of clothes!

As the wagon goes over a bump, Toby falls off the wagon into the woods. There she crosses paths with a wolf, a cougar, a skunk, a porcupine, and a bear. To appease each of them and keep from being eaten or attacked, Toby gives each of them an article of clothing (down to her long johns). Naturally, each animal thinks s/he looks absolutely marvelous, so when they see each other, they fight over who’s the most attractive. In the chase, clothes go flying and Toby manages to retrieve her wardrobe. Any how do Toby and her parents celebrate their reunion? Pancakes anyone?

Anne Isaacs’ Pancakes for Supper! is a lot of fun with her sing-song sing-along verse. This would be the kind of book you could read to a class, and the students would begin to anticipate the animals’ verse-dialogue out loud, wanting to interact with the book rather than sit quietly and listen passively. The story is a retelling of The Story of Little Black Sambo which was published in 1899, and which has been noted as being racist, at the very least with its early illustrations. However, Isaac’s version is not racist, so you can buy this book and read it with a clear conscience. It really has the feel of a tall tale, like that of Johnny Appleseed) with the wagon and the wilderness. She even adds a touch of feminism, giving the story a spunky heroine.

The illustrations by Mark Teague have a tall tale feel as well. He depicts Isaacs’ story faithfully in big, bold-colored illustrations that span two pages. There’s a lot of movement in each picture. The characters seem to be moving about, the animals prancing in Toby’s garments or Toby running for dear life. The pictures are so vivid they make you think that perhaps if you’re not careful, the animals might just jump out of the pictures and demand to have your clothing!

Marie Soriano

Johnson, D.B. Eddie’s Kingdom. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2005. $16. ISBN 0-618-56299-0.

Eddie is a little boy living in an apartment house. The plot follows him as he goes from apartment to apartment, asking to draw the pictures of neighbors who often don’t get along well. By the time the story ends, Eddie has united his kingdom through—art. Each of Johnson’s pictures covers two pages and is a pleasure to look at. He uses different perspectives and every page is full of movement. My favorite is the Mr. 1 one, but I also like the Chinese neighbor, and … I like them all. Johnson has a little artistic joke on the last right hand two pages….

I’m a big fan of Johnson, as you’ll see from the following review of his Henry Hikes to Fitchburg and other reviews on this site of his earlier Henry (Thoreau the Bear) picturebooks. Johnson is highly imaginative & offbeat; his story and art are hilarious in this book—are unique.

Johnson, D.B. Henry Hikes to Fitchburg. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2000 (pb). $6.95. ISBN 0-618-73749-9.

Henry David Thoreau was an American original, and D.B. Johnson’s picturebooks (this is the first of four about Henry) are original as well. His Henry David is a bear. As did the real Henry, this Henry makes a bet with a friend to see who can get to Fitchburg first. The friend will work for the money to buy a train ticket; Henry will walk through the woods and countryside. Who will arrive first? The question is still pertinent—are labor and public transportation better than walking for free where one wants to go? Is life a lot more complicated than it need be?

Johnson’s books are outstanding, not only for the text, which is minimal, but for his art, which is beautifully designed, expressive, and softly colorful. His book raises a simple question and the answer is obvious.

A. Allison

*Keough, Larry. Fragilly. Sing-along CD included. El Cajon, CA: Larry Keough, 2007. ISBN 978-1-60402-257-5. $21.95.

This is a Honey-Hunt story with a duo from Alaska, Sam the waltzing Bear and Huffin the Puffin, searching for the good gooey gold stuff they mistakenly call “Fragilly,” after the word “Fragile” stamped on the box full of honey which falls near Sam’s den. They travel from the North Pole to down south where the brown bears—and the bees—live. Yes! They find the honey and Sam finds out about bee stings. All their friends in Alaska are glad when they return.
Mr. Keough is a school teacher, and he has a sure ear for the fast-paced, slapstick, pun-filled humor little kids love. The Sing-along CD is fun, catchy music and the illustration are full of good humor. This a book sure to please.

I hope in the sequel, though, that a female character gets to go on the adventure, rather than being shown volunteering to keep Sam’s den clean while the boys go out and travel.

A. Allison

Lionni, Leo. Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. ISBN 0-394-80914-9. $16.95

This reprint of one of Lionni’s best known fables won a Caldecott Honor Book award when it was first published in 1969. It tells the story of a mouse who meets and befriends a mechanical counterpart. Alexander envies his new friend, Willy, because people don’t chase him around shouting, “Mouse! Mouse!” Willy even gets to sleep in a warm bed with other cherished toys. Alexander wishes he too could be a wind-up mouse. But one day, Willy finds himself tossed into a box of old toys slated for disposal the very next day and Alexander must come up with a plan to save his friend.

Acclaimed children’s author, Leo Lionni, winner of four Caldecott Honor Book awards, died in 1999 at the age of eighty-nine. His sumptuous collages and gentle stories have a timeless appeal. This hardcover gift edition brings Lionni’s magic to a new generation of young readers.

M. Janssen

Lionni, Leo. A Color of His Own. NY: Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2006 new edition. ISBN-0-375836977. $12.95 (Hardcover). Picture book 40 pages. Recommended age: preschool.

All animals have their own color, all animals that is, except for chameleons. This is the tale of one little chameleon in search for his own color, firstly attempting to stay on a leaf in order to define himself, but whose plan fails as the seasons inevitably change. When the spring comes, our little friend meets up with an older and wiser chameleon, who suggests that they stay together always—thus still changing, but always remaining the same color as each other.

This is not only a charming introduction into differentiating color for small children, but also a wise fable on the subject of friendship and identity from the acclaimed author and illustrator Leo Lionni (Caldecott Honor Recipient for Inch by Inch, Frederick, Swimmy, and Alexander the wind up mouse). Originally published in 1975, Lionni's bold water-color style has an enchanting simplicity that will still captivate young children, and a story that continues to provide us with the perfect red and white polka dotted happy ever after.

Ellen Nef

Lister, Robin. The Story of King Arthur. Illust. Alan Baker. Boston: Kingfisher. 1997.ISBN 0-7534-5101-8. $15.95. Recommended Age 9 + . 96 pages.

“My name is Merlin, a name to conjure with; Merlin the wizard; Merlin, King Arthur's friend.”

As the greatest wizard of all time reminisces on the past, the story of King Arthur, from pre-conception to death, is unfolded for us in Lister's wonderful adaptation for children. Divided into fourteen chapters, the novel follows the narrative from Merlin's own miraculous beginnings to Arthur's entry into Avalon, with enchanted swords, the great round table, and knightly quests along the way.

This beautiful book is full of celtic-inspired illustration, and most closely aligned with the seminal text of Arthurian Legend: Malory's Morte D'Arthur. Though there are some gruesome references that may be distressing for some children (for example, children roasting on a spit) and some subtle allusions to “coupling in the night” that some parents may feel inappropriate for younger children, Lister has done a remarkable job in combining the myth and the legend, as well as the vast array of characters that make up the great stage of Arthur's Camelot. Reading the story through Merlin's own narrative perspective is a particularly engaging device, lulling us into a world of oral folklore and dynamic storytelling...quite apt for one of the greatest stories that still holds the power to keep its audience captivated after centuries.

Ellen Nef

Lithgow, John. Mahalia Mouse Goes to College. Illus. Igor Oleynikov. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2007. ISBN 978-1-4169-2715-0. $17.99

Author and actor John Lithgow returns with the inspiring story of a mouse who yearns to be a college graduate. Mahalia lives with her family under an old Harvard dormitory. One day, searching for food, she finds herself trapped in a student’s backpack and carried off to class. Enchanted by the lecture, she begins auditing the course on her own initiative. Eventually she wins the recognition and admiration of her professor and fellow students and spends the next four years pursuing her degree. And at her graduation, she gets the greatest surprise of all.

Lithgow’s cleverly rhymed tale is beautifully complemented by the artwork of Russian illustrator Ivan Olyenikov in his American debut. The book includes a CD of Lithgow reading the text to Harvard students at the 2005 commencement ceremonies.

M. Janssen

Lucas, David. Whale. New York: Alfred Knopf, 2006. $16.99. ISBN 978-0-375-84338-9.

When the sun doesn’t shine through the windows of his house one the morning, young Joe looks out to see what’s the matter. It’s big: it’s not just a fish blocking the view—it’s an entire whale. A whale who is eloquently apologetic as he explains to the townsfolk that he didn’t at all mean to ruin their town, he was just trying to have some fun by balancing on his tail. Unfortunately, he landed on the town. Young Joe enlists the help of Owl, of Wind, Sun, Moon, and the “Innumerable Stars,” and while the townsfolk wait for a solution, they all sit on top of the whale. Finally, they come up with a plan and the whale helps, too. The solution is as funny as the predicament. But there’s more; in an imaginative resolution, the town is rebuilt by an unlikely cast of characters from the ocean. The town is better than before, and the whale promises Joe he will come back for a visit.
What fun this book is! The story is highly original and, since the author and the artist are the same person, every nuance of the text is enhanced by the colorful, detailed art. Story and pictures guarantee a book that will be read and reread many times.

A. Allison

Marineau, Michele. Cinderella. Illus. Mylene Pratt. Tundra: Toronto, 2007. ISBN 978-0-88776-825-5. CAN. $14.99/ U.S. $10.95. Ages 4-7. www.tundrabooks.com.

Michele Marineau adapts Charles Perrault’s Cinderella or The Little Glass Slipper faithfully and yet with a modern feminist flare.

Cinderella, here named Cynthia, is content living with her widowed father. They have a happy life together until he marries a lazy woman with two equally lazy daughters. Cynthia keeps house while the trio sit on their behinds, and after a long day of work, she sleeps in front of the fireplace.

When the king throws a ball, the whole family is invited but Cynthia’s step-mother and step-sisters scoff, declaring she has too much housework to do. Feeling unfulfilled with her life, Cynthia has a pity party of one. That is, until her fairy godmother appears and insists she take control of her life. I won’t ruin the rest of the story for you by giving away the modern details.

If you’d like to compare Marineau’s version to Perrault’s and other versions of Cinderella, try Cinderella: A Casebook edited by Alan Dundes. It also includes scholarly essays from literary, anthropological and folkloric perspectives.

Mylene Pratt’s illustrations also make this version of Cinderella refreshing. The illustrator uses paint to create cartoonish characters and creates movement with hard brushstrokes and thick paint. There aren’t any hard lines in sight. However, Pratt’s illustrations also have a down-to-earth feel. Forget bright colors, Barbie-pink and glitter. Pratt uses more muted, neutral colors like maroon, olive green, powder blue, beige, and grey. Princesses and cutesy fairies do not reside here. Hallelujah!

Marie Soriano

McCourt, Frank. Angela and the Baby Jesus. Illust. Raul Colon. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2007. ISBN-13: 9781416937890

Six- year- old Angela is visiting the neighborhood church at Christmas time, and sees the Baby Jesus lying in a manger, looking cold; she wonders why no one has put a blanket on him. Even in the cold he is smiling, but she knows in her heart she needs to warm him. From this simple premise, the master storyteller and Pulitzer Prize winner Frank McCourt weaves a story about Angela, as she takes the Baby Jesus out of the manger, and home with her, to warm him. The reaction of her brother Pat, who immediately tells their Ma that Angela has put the baby upstairs, prompts the family to go up and discover that Angela has indeed taken the parish Baby Jesus. The family wraps him, and together they go back to the church to return him to safety. When they arrive, the priest and a policeman listen, as Angela steps forward and faces the policeman, who threatened to arrest her. The story is sentimental, and rings true, as Angela with innocence says she did it to keep him warm. The story ends well, with a lovely assurance that his mother will warm Baby Jesus during the night.

The writing and story telling in this tale are masterful, and the while there is a lot of text in this picture book, it works well. This could become a new holiday classic that can be enjoyed by the entire family. It would be great for reading together, and can be enjoyed by all ages.

JoAnn Jonas

Pearce, Philippa. The Squirrel Wife. Illus. Wayne Anderson. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick, 2007. ISBN 978-0-7636-3551-0. U.S. $16.99/ $21.00 CAN. Ages 5-10. www.candlewick.com

The Squirrel Wife is an original fairy tale told by Philippa Pearce, the beloved British author of the Carnegie Award-winning Tom’s Midnight Garden and The Battle of Bubble and Squeak which won the Whitbread Award. She and illustrator Wayne Anderson have combined talents to create a magical book.

The young swineherd Jack lives with his mean older brother in a cottage near the forest. The brother is always warning him not to take the pigs into the forest because of the green people, the fairy folk who live there. One evening during a storm Jack hears someone calling from the forest. Against his brother’s warnings, he goes to investigate and finds one of the green people has been injured, trapped under a fallen tree.

Rather than bring the green man home to his unkind sibling, Jack carries the man back to his people deep in the forest. As a reward, the Lord of the Green People gives Jack a golden ring. When the time is right, he’s to find a newborn female squirrel and put the ring over her paw. The orders are quite mysterious, but Jack does as he’s told.

Following the turning of the seasons when the squirrels are grown, Jack again finds something in the forest. This time he discovers a woman wearing a gold bracelet on her wrist; the squirrel he chose has now become a wife for him.

Together they make a home near the forest and with his wife’s help in choosing the right wood, Jack becomes a carpenter, selling the crafts he makes in the village. But the villagers sense Jack’s wife is different, and they’re wary of her. This makes it mighty easy for Jack’s jealous brother to convince them that Jack is a thief and should be imprisoned.

When the villagers lock up Jack, his only hope is his squirrel wife who makes a deal with the green people to return to her original form. As a squirrel, she’s able to snag the key to Jack’s prison room, thus helping him escape.

But once Jack is free, what will happen to the squirrel wife? Will she be trapped as a squirrel forever? Will Jack ever be reunited with the wife he loves so much?

Philippa Pearce has written a lovely fairy tale. This is partly a story about how good deeds are rewarded and how people fear what they don’t understand, but even more so, it is a story about loving people for who they are and not what they can do for you. Essentially, it’s a fairy tale about what real love is.

Wayne Anderson uses colored pencil, pencil, acrylic ink, and watercolor to create gorgeous, lush illustrations. The lines are flowing and the colors soft. Some of the illustrations take up a page or two, so you get pulled into that forest. Anderson makes the forest a beautiful, wondrous place. Some illustrations are circles of vines and flowers that encapsulate bits of the characters’ actions. Pearce’s fairy tale begins, “Once upon a time, long ago,” and Anderson’s pictures have that feel.

Marie Soriano

Pinkwater, Daniel. Bad Bear Detectives. Illus. Jill Pinkwater. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2006. ISBN 978-0618-43125-0. $16.00

Those two bad bears are back in the fourth book of this hilarious series celebrating the triumph of appetitive desire over the forces of law and order. Irving and Muktuk (whose name refers to the traditional meal of whale skin and blubber in the Inupiaq language) are suspects in the theft of some expensive designer muffins. Police Captain Hare wants them in jail. The wayward bears decide to do some sleuthing of their own to bring the real culprits to justice. Just who were the cunning criminals behind this master heist?

The Pinkwater partnership continues to amuse and delight with text and illustrations joined in perfect harmony. It’s hard to imagine weighing in on the side of moral rectitude while Irving and Muktuk are out there having so much fun.

M. Janssen

Schotter, Roni. Mama, I’ll Give You the World. Illust. S. Saelig Gallagher. New York: Schwartz and Wade, 2006. ISBN 978-0-375-83612-1. $16.95. Ages 4-8.

Luisa is a young girl being raised by her single mother. She loves her mother a lot and realizes how much her mother sacrifices for her. It is Mama’s dream to give Luisa the world by saving up for her to go to college, so that she can learn about everything, but more than anything Luisa wants to give the world to her mama. As a perceptive young girl, Luisa knows her mom is not always happy. She rarely smiles anymore, but when she does, she is “the prettiest of all.” So Luisa wants to do something that will make her mama smile. Luisa knows that Mama dreams about a place she once went to called Roseland. She has a picture from that place; it is a place of dancing and laughter and happier times. It was the world to her. So now that it is Mama’s birthday, it is up to Luisa to give her mom the world.

One important issue that this book covertly addresses is the issue of single parenthood. The narrator of the story focalizes on Luisa, and the reader only knows what Luisa knows. Luisa says that her dad is not around, but the reader does not know why. Being raised by a singe parent is more common today than perhaps it used to be, and a lot of readers will possibly be able to relate to that.

I love the imagery of what “the world” represents in this book. For Mama, it means a grand education for her daughter, a chance for her daughter to have more than her. For Luisa, the world is making her mom dance and smile again. Both interpretations are beautiful. They both show the deep and selfless love mother and daughter have for each other.

The illustrations of S. Saelig Gallagher add to the thoughtfulness of the story. They are artfully done with vivid colors and soft images that portray the love of Luisa and Mama, as well as the people around them. The combination of the text and the illustrations make a heartwarming and inspirational story. I highly recommend this book.

Joyce Ho

Schneider, Josh. You’ll Be Sorry. New York: Clarion Books – Houghton Mifflin Company, 2007. ISBN 0-618-81932-0. $15.00 (Hard Back) 32 pp.

Samantha’s parents warn her that she’ll be sorry if she hits her brother, but she worries that she’ll be sorry if she doesn’t. And so she does (Smack. Waaaaaah!) What Samantha doesn’t reckon on however, are the amazing consequences that unfold as her little brother cries, and cries, and cries some more.

Schneider uses a primary palette of green hues which work well with the watery action, and the watercolor illustrations are full of humorous details that will delight children. Particularly engaging are the portraits on the wall that watch, and react to, the drama unfolding before them; one spread revealing a framed picture floating on water, and holding up an S.O.S sign as the water level climbs the stairs.

Characters here are represented as mice, and though the result of Samantha’s violence is somewhat fantastical, the message behind the humor is an important one. Once Samantha has apologized, she still feels she wants to now pinch her brother, but she has learned, from experience, the disastrous fallout of her violent urges. This book is a great tool in teaching children the consequence of their actions—especially for families in which hitting has become an issue.

Ellen Nef

Schubert, Ingrid and Dieter. Hammer Soup. Asheville: Front Street and Lemniscaat, 2004. ISBN 1-932425-02-0. $15.95. Ages 2-8.

Kate takes care to keep her house and garden neat, and doesn’t like the local wildlife’s habit of feeding off her vegetables. She’d rather keep all her food for herself and her pet cat. Her orderly existence is interrupted when a giant named Bruce starts building an unusual house next-door. During the summer and fall, while Kate works to tend her garden and store food for the winter, Bruce takes advantage of the fine weather to play and fish. He doesn’t pay attention to Kate’s many reminders that he “should do something useful.” One winter night, while Kate relaxes comfortably in her cozy house, the drafty home that Bruce never got around to fortifying is blown away by a storm. Bruce keeps up his good spirits and, seeing no other option, Kate brings him into her household. She doesn’t want to share her food, but when Bruce offers to cook hammer soup, her interest (and tummy) are intrigued. As a yummy soup is concocted, a new friendship is formed.

Hammer Soup is a delightful tale that combines and neatly twists themes from the Ant and the Grasshopper and Stone / Nail Soup. Ingrid and Dieter Schubert are a talented husband and wife team who have created a story that speaks of the merits of work and play, and also of the delicious fruits, or hammer soup, to be gotten of a clever imagination. The charming illustrations are rich with a story that goes beyond the text, and many details that will amuse the reader. Bruce’s house, for example, is vividly portrayed as a giant’s (and a child’s) ideal playhouse—exuberant, colorful, fun, and open to welcoming all the wildlife critters that Kate keeps out of her yard. Bruce may be larger in size than Kate, but he is more child-like at heart, and he and the more mature Kate eventually realize that they have a lot to learn from each other.

SarahEllen Hickle

Serfozo, Mary. Whooo’s There? Illust. Jeffrey Scherer. New York: Random House, 2007. ISBN 978-0-375-84050-0. $9.99. Ages 4-8. 40 pp.

The Old Owl sweeps through the nighttime forest, encountering nocturnal creatures from a musical cricket to a scavenging raccoon, who contribute to the different sights, smells, and sounds of the woods. The repeating motif of “Whooo!” and “Whooo’s there?” leads the reader through Old Owls’ discovery of the various lifestyles of the forest inhabitants. The peacefulness of the moonlight shadowed leaves delightfully contrasts the activity of the moon-eyed insects and animals. Framed by the passage from dusk to dawn, this fun picture book of rhyming narrative by Mary Serfozo complements Jeffrey Scherer’s engagingly colorful illustrations. Whooo’s There? presents an enjoyable venture into the lives of our nocturnal friends.

Emily Moore

Sunami, Kitoba. How the Fisherman Tricked the Genie: A Tale Within a Tale Within a Tale. Illust. Amiko Hirao. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers-Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division, 2002. $14.99. Ages 9-12.

This picture book, inspired by Arabian Nights: Tales from a Thousand and One Nights—an ancient work of Persian literature featuring hundreds of tales within the frame of the story of a ruler’s wife who evades death each night by entertaining her husband with her clever storytelling,—warns against the danger of repaying a good deed with evil. Sunami’s revision of this classic frame story features a poor fisherman who finds a genie in a bottle (reminiscent of the well-known tale from Arabian Nights, “Aladdin”) while fishing in the Arabian Sea. The clever fisherman tells the vengeful genie a story within a story as he attempts to convince the genie, who has vowed to kill the one who releases him from his 3,000 year prison, to spare his life.

Sunami’s multi-layered narrative is embedded within a short introduction and poems on the first and last pages. Each story within a story is set apart by a different typeface, and is also signified through the enlarged first letter of the first word for each tale (a technique common to books of fairy tales, as well as medieval illuminated manuscripts). This engaging picture book, illustrated vividly with a variety of striking angles and jewel-toned colors by Amiko Hirao, artfully portrays an ancient message of the triumph of good over evil in the colorfully-rendered setting of a fantastical middle east.

Emily Moore

Tellis, Annabel. If My Dad Were a Dog. New York: Scholastic, 2007. ISBN 978-0-439-91387-4. $16.99.

Picture your dad as a dog (just for a day). What would you do? Tellis combines photographs of a handsome chocolate Labrador with simple, gaily-colored backdrops to accompany her rhymed text in this amusing and imaginative romp.

The narrator walks Dad through a day of doggy fun from walks in the park to a prize at the dog show. Designed to be read aloud, this easy-to-follow tale should provide lots of laughs for young canine-loving audiences. Better let Dad read it first, though.

M. Janssen

Thach, James Otis. A Child’s Guide to Common Household Monsters. Illus. David Udovic. Honesdale, Pennsylvania: Front Street, 2007. ISBN 978-1-932425-58-1. Ages 2-6.

In this night-time tale, Thach puts a surprise twist on the monster under the bed.

A girl meets the monster under her bed, discovering that not only is he harmless (his only sin is stealing socks), he’s under the bed because he’s afraid of the monster in her closet, who likes the smell of clean laundry and is also hiding. He’s afraid of the monster in the attic, who’s afraid of the monster in the basement, who’s afraid of her!

A Child’s Guide to Common Household Monsters is fun and adorable. Thach has written the book in rhyme, so it would be a great book to read aloud in a classroom, maybe even on Halloween or to your child before bedtime.

The illustrations by David Udovic are finely done. They are gigantic, often taking up two pages, and sometimes they’re vertical. Udovic’s monsters look silly and strange, maybe even a tiny bit cuddly, with a child-like quality about them, definitely the antithesis of the Boogey Man.

The way the text and illustrations work together is interesting. The text doesn’t tell a linear narrative. Thach’s verse tells readers about the monsters, for example, “Your house is full of monsters, from the basement to the roof! The first is very near-at-hand, just underneath your bed. There upon the hardwood floor he lays his hairy head.” While Thach describes the ghoulies, Udovic tells a story with his illustrations, depicting a girl first finding the monster under her bed and then going with him to confront the monster he’s afraid of. The girl does this with each monster until the end when morning comes and they help her make breakfast.

The text and pictures work well together. If the illustrations had been more like a guide and had simply shown a picture of each monster with the verse, readers might not be as engaged as with a linear narrative. This way, readers are swallowed into the story. No pun intended.

Marie Soriano

Thompson, Colin. Castles. New York: Red Fox Books, 2007. ISBN 978-0-099-43942-4. $5.99. Ages 4 and up.

Colin Thompson is known for his fabulous, fantastical and abstract illustrations. Castles fits right in, featuring his usual flair and phenomenal imagination. Castles is not really a story. It is more a series of pictures of amazing and surreal castles accompanied by Thompson’s explanation of them. The castles range from one made from musical instruments, one formed around the words “My castle is the best castle in creation,” to the castle of the lost city of Atlantis.

As usual with Thompson’s illustrations, it could take a lifetime to fully discover every detail he incorporates into his drawings. For example, this book features castles of every shape and kind, but within these castles there are princes and princesses who are scattered in minute places of the castles. It takes awhile to find them all—if you even can. Also, for example, in the music castle, on first glance you might only see that the castle is built around several different instruments like a violin, a guitar, clarinet and trombone, but there is so much more to it. Some of the castles towers are guitar frets, one of the reed pipes has a café in it, and one of the instrument knobs is actually a deer head. Each castle is full these fascinating and creative details. Every time you examine one of the castles you are sure to find something new.

Another book of Thompson that I really enjoy is based on the lost city of Atlantis. It is called Looking for Atlantis. It has a lot of similarities to Castles in terms of those little details embedded within the illustrations. It was the book that first made me a fan of Thompson’s work.

Castles is another superior work. Thompson’s works are like ongoing puzzles and mazes. It is a very engaging book for children.. I would highly recommend this book. I truly enjoyed it a lot, and look forward to discovering new details the next time I look over this book.

Joyce Ho

Wallace, Nancy Elizabeth. The Kindness Quilt. Tarrytown NY: Marshall Cavendish, 2006. $16.99. ISBN 978-0-7614-5313-0.

This book about kindness could be obvious and moralistic, but it’s not. It starts with an elementary school teacher reading Aesop’s fable about the Lion and the Mouse to her students. They understand the message: it’s possible to be kind whether you’re big or small. Sometimes, little acts of kindness are the most important of activities. The teacher asks her students to do something kind, then make a picture of it—what a good idea. No longer abstract, kindness becomes something the youngsters think about DOING. Sharing soup with a neighbor, picking up litter, reading books to siblings, setting the table—these acts become pictures that contribute to a Kindness Quilt—not a sewn one (kids couldn’t do that by themselves) but one made with paper and scissors and put together by the teacher for display on the wall. But the acts of kindness keep growing, and so does the paper quilt. Soon the quilt must be moved from the small classroom bulletin board to one of the walls in the school hallway, providing a lot of satisfaction for everyone who takes part in its creation.
Wallace’s book kindly, without preaching, shows children that kindness is awareness of other people and creatures, that one needed by mature or powerful to be kind, and that kindness itself is essentially a work of art. Speaking of art, Wallace’s paper cutout illustrations model the simplicity and expressiveness that inexpensive and readily-available activities can supply.

A. Allison

Winter, Jonah. Dizzy. Illus. Sean Qualls. New York: Scholastic, 2007. ISBN 0-439- 50737-5. $16.99.

What a treat! The author Winter and the artist Qualls fuse their arts on pages that flow with language, color, and design. Suits the subject: Dizzy Gillespie. Basically biography, this picturebook brings new life to a great man.

A. Allison