Three clever chickens outwit their abductors—and save themselves from certain death—in this pro-poultry tale. Barkus and Sly Fox are introduced in the opening; Lambert’s (Little Ones Do, 2001, etc.) soft-edged vignettes show the titular cousins as they lurk about the village at night then grab their loot from a local hen house (“ ‘I would like a plump roast chicken for my supper,’ said Barkus”). But Biddy, Bluff, and Tweed have chutzpah; since the thieves have put them in a shed overnight, they also have time to hatch a plan (“No one is going to serve us with cream sauce”). Searching for a way to escape the shed, Tweed stumbles upon a box of stolen cutlery. Among the forks and knives is a golden ladle. Lambert’s double-paged, full-bleed spread reveals the ruse: Biddy sits on a nest with the rounded orb of the ladle peeking out from beneath her tail feathers. “If you eat one of us she’ll be so upset she won’t lay,” Tweed tells her hungry captor, and he decides to let them be. The tightly woven narrative moves toward a satisfying conclusion as greed causes a rift between the cousins and eventually leads to freedom for the flock. McAllister’s take on a time-honored theme is vibrant and fresh; quickly paced, the narrative is just right for reading aloud. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: July 1, 2002
ISBN: 1-58234-764-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2002
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
A book that will make young dog-owners smile in recognition and confirm dogless readers' worst suspicions about the mayhem caused by pets, even winsome ones. Sam, who bears passing resemblance to an affable golden retriever, is praised for fetching the family newspaper, and goes on to fetch every other newspaper on the block. In the next story, only the children love Sam's swimming; he is yelled at by lifeguards and fishermen alike when he splashes through every watering hole he can find. Finally, there is woe to the entire family when Sam is bored and lonely for one long night. Boland has an essential message, captured in both both story and illustrations of this Easy-to-Read: Kids and dogs belong together, especially when it's a fun-loving canine like Sam. An appealing tale. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8037-1530-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1996
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