A gratifying introduction to one of the most notable pieces of religious literature. (iPad storybook app. 5-10)
John Bunyan’s Christian allegory gets light-handed but soulful treatment.
This animated app relays Bunyan’s story in a somewhat breathless fashion, evidently to underscore the import of the proceedings. But it wasn’t necessary, for though this is a considerably pared-down version of the original, it retains its propulsive nature in a color-saturated, near–3-D format. Here is Christian, carrying his heavy load; no mention of sin is made, so the story can be read as a simple morality play, though the episode with the cross, staying on the narrow path and the quest for the City of Zion belie its Christian roots. Still, the overarching themes are the importance of doing the right thing, behaving with grace and learning how to navigate a world that is a minefield of trouble and temptation. All the singular characters are present: Christian’s traveling companions Faithful and Hopeful; Formalist and Hypocrisy; the Worldly Wiseman and the Evangelist; Discretion, Prudence, Piety and Charity. So too the great places of Vainglory, the Valley of Humiliation and the Valley of the Shadow of Death. The narrative energy and constant happenings keep users thoroughly engaged, while the characters, as drawn for the screen, have strong personalities, and the landscapes have good visual appeal.
A gratifying introduction to one of the most notable pieces of religious literature. (iPad storybook app. 5-10)Pub Date: Dec. 5, 2012
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Nation9
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
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