Pinkwater continues the adventures of Mush, the cooking, talking, and highly intelligent mushamute dog from the planet Growf-Woof-Woof. Mush is teaching his friend, the narrator Kelly, how to cook. The two friends are in the woods sharing a small picnic lunch in the park when Kelly asks Mush to tell the story of how he came to Earth. In familiar Pinkwater fashion, Mush tells the hilarious story of taking a little excursion, getting lost in the solar system, running out of gas, and crashing into Earth. Mush’s story begins to resemble the familiar story of the Bremen Town Musicians when he befriends musicians of all sorts, from a banjo-playing cat to a trombone-blaring donkey to a sweet-singing chicken. Simple line drawings inform the wild story. Readers will enjoy this light journey to the jazz clubs of Chicago, where the animals overhear a dastardly plot by men with “loud and tasteless” neckties. Generous white space surrounding the short paragraphs and a quick-moving plot make this a winner for the new reader with an off-beat sense of humor. Best of all, Mush promises many more stories to come. (Fiction. 6-9)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-689-84572-3
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2002
The wriggly narrator of Diary of a Worm (2003) puts in occasional appearances, but it’s his arachnid buddy who takes center stage here, with terse, tongue-in-cheek comments on his likes (his close friend Fly, Charlotte’s Web), his dislikes (vacuums, people with big feet), nervous encounters with a huge Daddy Longlegs, his extended family—which includes a Grandpa more than willing to share hard-won wisdom (The secret to a long, happy life: “Never fall asleep in a shoe.”)—and mishaps both at spider school and on the human playground. Bliss endows his garden-dwellers with faces and the odd hat or other accessory, and creates cozy webs or burrows colorfully decorated with corks, scraps, plastic toys and other human detritus. Spider closes with the notion that we could all get along, “just like me and Fly,” if we but got to know one another. Once again, brilliantly hilarious. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-06-000153-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Joanna Cotler/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2005
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look...
Winning actually isn’t everything, as jazz-happy Rooster learns when he goes up against the legendary likes of Mules Davis and Ella Finchgerald at the barnyard talent show.
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look good—particularly after his “ ‘Hen from Ipanema’ [makes] / the barnyard chickies swoon.”—but in the end the competition is just too stiff. No matter: A compliment from cool Mules and the conviction that he still has the world’s best band soon puts the strut back in his stride. Alexander’s versifying isn’t always in tune (“So, he went to see his cousin, / a pianist of great fame…”), and despite his moniker Rooster plays an electric bass in Bower’s canted country scenes. Children are unlikely to get most of the jokes liberally sprinkled through the text, of course, so the adults sharing it with them should be ready to consult the backmatter, which consists of closing notes on jazz’s instruments, history and best-known musicians.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58536-688-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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