Much ado about very little in this incoherently sketchy easy reader. Finding in succession a copy of The Fairy Handbook, a magic wand, and a packet of fairy dust on her porch, impulsive young Posh tries to do the dishes and find a neighbor’s missing pooch by magic. Not being one to read instructions, however, she fills the kitchen with suds, discovers a mermaid in the bathtub, and creates sundry other mishaps. Luckily, she lives with Pish, a more methodical “best friend,” but also, to judge from the resemblance in Bottner’s rapidly drawn illustrations, either her mother or her big sister, who reins her in and organizes the clean-up. Pish and Posh both sport pointy, doglike ears in the course of this episode—which, along with the fit-and-start pacing may leave young readers wondering what they’re missing. Not much. (Easy reader. 6-7)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-06-051416-7
Page Count: 48
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2003
The poster boy for relentless mischief-makers everywhere, first encountered in No, David! (1998), gives his weary mother a rest by going to school. Naturally, he’s tardy, and that’s but the first in a long string of offenses—“Sit down, David! Keep your hands to yourself! PAY ATTENTION!”—that culminates in an afterschool stint. Children will, of course, recognize every line of the text and every one of David’s moves, and although he doesn’t exhibit the larger- than-life quality that made him a tall-tale anti-hero in his first appearance, his round-headed, gap-toothed enthusiasm is still endearing. For all his disruptive behavior, he shows not a trace of malice, and it’ll be easy for readers to want to encourage his further exploits. (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-590-48087-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1999
Small, a very little fox, needs some reassurance from Large in the unconditional love department. If he is grim and grumpy, will he still be loved? “ ‘Oh, Small,’ said Large, ‘grumpy or not, I’ll always love you, no matter what.’ “ So it goes, in a gentle rhyme, as Large parries any number of questions that for Small are very telling. What if he were to turn into a young bear, or squishy bug, or alligator? Would a mother want to hug and hold these fearsome animals? Yes, yes, answers Large. “But does love wear out? Does it break or bend? Can you fix it or patch it? Does it mend?” There is comfort in Gliori’s pages, but it is a result of repetition and not the imagery; this is a quick fix, not an enduring one, but it eases Small’s fears and may well do the same for children. (Picture book. 2-6)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-202061-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1999
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