A collection of love poems spoken in the distinct voice of a sibling, schoolmate, student, playmate, secret admirer, and even the self. First-person narrators find expression in short, unrhymed verses that sensitively reveal their innermost thoughts and hidden yearnings. A student who signs his poem ``First Seat First Row'' is the awkward, bumbling admirer of ``Ms. Back Row''; a quiet-as-a- mouse pupil admires a teacher; a grandson finds himself full of love for a grandmother; even ``when all your [cookie] jars are empty.'' Every poem is an imagined, would-be valentine, full of hope, that satisfies readers when it finds its way to the intended, and breaks their hearts when it is rejected or rebuffed. Desimini's mixed-media illustrations make artful use of sculptured models, collages, oil paintings, photographs, and computer graphics: A cut- paper mouse bashfully hides under a desk, a snowman with a basketball for a head awaits a game of one-on-one, and a hard- working Mr. Potato Head father snores on the couch, loved offstage by a son wearing earplugs. Every spread stands alone, a vignette of immeasurable emotion. (Picture book/poetry. 6-10)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-590-48478-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Blue Sky/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1996
At ``Step 2'' in the useful ``Step into Reading'' series: an admirably clear, well-balanced presentation that centers on wolves' habits and pack structure. Milton also addresses their endangered status, as well as their place in fantasy, folklore, and the popular imagination. Attractive realistic watercolors on almost every page. Top-notch: concise, but remarkably extensive in its coverage. A real bargain. (Nonfiction/Easy reader. 6-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-679-91052-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1992
BOOK REVIEW
Trickling, bubbling, swirling, rushing, a river flows down from its mountain beginnings, past peaceful country and bustling city on its way to the sea. Hooper (The Drop in My Drink, 1998, etc.) artfully evokes the water’s changing character as it transforms from “milky-cold / rattling-bold” to a wide, slow “sliding past mudflats / looping through marshes” to the end of its journey. Willey, best known for illustrating Geraldine McCaughrean’s spectacular folk-tale collections, contributes finely detailed scenes crafted in shimmering, intricate blues and greens, capturing mountain’s chill, the bucolic serenity of passing pastures, and a sense of mystery in the water’s shadowy depths. Though Hooper refers to “the cans and cartons / and bits of old wood” being swept along, there’s no direct conservation agenda here (for that, see Debby Atwell’s River, 1999), just appreciation for the river’s beauty and being. (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-7636-0792-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000
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