by Allan Ahlberg ; illustrated by Bruce Ingman ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 17, 2018
Glimpses of a writer’s life, with an engaging bid for sympathy at the travails thereof.
In this (presumably) made-up account, a promising picture-book project falls afoul of a series of aggravating mishaps.
Sitting in his tiny writing shed, narrator Ahlberg begins a brilliant narrative (“Little ducks dreaming / Afternoon nap / Riverbank steaming / Crocodile… / Snap!”). Alas, this proceeds to be splashed with spilled coffee, put on hold in the heat of composition by a family vacation, eaten by garden snails, and finally delivered to illustrator “Bruce”—who unilaterally decides to draw hippos because there are “too many crocodile books.” Then the editor wants to make changes too; an overeager designer must be likewise quelled; and the printer’s young daughter decides to “tidy up” the loose pages. The author mournfully offers on one side of a double gatefold his original vision (“Not Roald Dahl, of course, or Julia Donaldson even, but not bad”) and on the other, a spread-by-spread layout of the jumbled result, complete with changing typefaces, random sketches, mismatched orientations, sudden shifts to French and then Chinese, and a small chocolate handprint. His mild “Oh dear” at the end of this chain of calamities signals his intent to deliver a mild ribbing rather than vengeful slashing to his collaborators over the years. “Anyway, mustn’t grumble,” he writes midcourse. “That’s how a book gets made, after all. Teamwork.” The informal illustrations help to make light of the episode. Ingman’s nearly all-white cast inadvertently reinforces current criticisms of the industry.
Glimpses of a writer’s life, with an engaging bid for sympathy at the travails thereof. (Picture book. 7-9, adult)Pub Date: April 17, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-500-65090-5
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018
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by Rebecca Hainnu ; illustrated by Hwei Lim ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2015
A fresh, if not quite as seamless, alternative to Robert D. and Daniel San Souci’s Song of Sedna (1981).
A popular Inuit cautionary legend, featuring a haughty young woman and a gruesome climactic twist.
Arnaq will accept no suitor, until a shaman sea bird disguised as a handsome young man sweeps her away with glittering promises to a wretched, reeking tent on a distant shore. When her father arrives to rescue her, the shaman raises such a storm that her terrified dad casts her overboard—and cuts off her fingers to keep her from holding on to the boat. Those fingers are transformed into whales and seals, and she, into a testy spirit named Nuliajuq, who calls up storms on all who “disrespect the land or the sea.” This and other modern-sounding lines (“Eventually Arnaq succumbed to complete depression”) give the otherwise formal narrative a playfully anachronistic air that may or may not be intentional. Lim illustrates the tale in a realistic rather than stylized way, using flowing lines and brush strokes to depict natural settings, faces, Arnaq’s lustrous locks (and, though seen only from a distance, fingerless hands), and a range of accurately detailed arctic and sea animals. In an afterword, the author explains that the sea spirit goes by several regional names; a pronunciation guide to Inuktitut words in this version is also included.
A fresh, if not quite as seamless, alternative to Robert D. and Daniel San Souci’s Song of Sedna (1981). (Picture book/folk tale. 7-9)Pub Date: March 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-927095-75-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Inhabit Media
Review Posted Online: Jan. 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2015
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by Rebecca Hainnu ; illustrated by Qin Leng
by Frances Watts & illustrated by Judy Watson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2010
Oh, the curse of being the only child—not adorable like the baby and not smart like the older sibling! Invisible, that’s how Marvelous Maud, sheep sidekick to only-child, newly selected superhero Extraordinary Ernie, feels. Maud decides to adopt a sidekick of her own. Turns out being a sidekick is no job for a middle kitten, bunny, tortoise, horse, goldfish, duckling or mouse, so Maud decides to hold a contest. Along the way, she enjoys hearing the travails of all the middle critters, but she does not notice when Ernie feels left out of the discussion. When the Baxter Branch of the Superheroes Society meets, Ernie’s ennui becomes obvious. Valiant Vera (the bravest and fastest superhero) throws down the gauntlet and bans the argumentative aces until they can work together. Decorated with frequent humorous black-and-white illustrations of winsome animals and adults in leotards, this offering is just right for readers ready for the challenge of a chapter book. Sibling conflict, animals and superheroes are all high on the interest level of young readers, making this a series to watch. (Fiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8028-5368-4
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Eerdmans
Review Posted Online: Dec. 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2010
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