I WISH I COULD FLY

by Ron Maris ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 1987

In a simple animal story for the very young, a turtle tries to fly like a gull, dive like a frog, climb like a squirrel and run like a rabbit, all to no avail; but when it starts to rain, he's the lucky one. Each disaster is accompanied by four exclamations in huge type (e.g., ""FLOP! PLOP! SPLUTTER! SPLASH!"" as Turtle lands in the pond), just right for evoking chuckles from a small lap-sitter; the last sequence (""SNUG, WARM, COSY. and DRY!"") is as satisfying as a bedtime hug. Marls' mixed-media illustrations are suitably bold for the age group, yet subtle; he makes effective use of the texture of laid paper, and softens some lines by blurring them with watercolor. His creatures are carefully observed, true to their animal nature in spite of their comic activities. Blues and greens predominate in a lovely palette, which darkens almost imperceptibly as a sunny day becomes a stormy one. A welcome addition to books for the youngest; the large, clear illustrations also make this very suitable for sharing with toddler groups.

Pub Date: March 16, 1987

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Greenwillow

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1987

Categories: CHILDREN'S