A sensitive, atmospheric story depicting the fragility and rewards of friendship.
The protagonist mourns his friendless status in this tale by two longtime Swedish collaborators.
Originally published by R and S Books (1992), this version has a larger trim size and updated illustrations, although the diminutive man retains his tan coat, brown hat, and chubby cheeks. He is a lonely figure, sitting on his front steps, wishing for a companion. Dogs and old men are mean to him: “People thought he was too small and possibly a bit slow.” He creates a sign advertising for a friend and waits patiently outside. On the 10th night, he awakens to find a dog nuzzling his hand. Lindgren and Eriksson slowly build interactions of mutual delight: playful roughhousing, bedtime arrangements (dog in bed; man in dresser drawer), shared meals. The bare trees of winter silhouetted against a gray sky yield to dancing flowers surrounded by a warm, green landscape. The dog’s antics, e.g., peeing on the fence, will amuse young viewers, just as the sad moments will touch them. All is well (there is even payback to the bullies) until a little girl visits. Three is a perilous number in relationships, and the man flees to the forest, where “[h]is tears fell like pearls on the moss.” When the man returns home to investigate, a joyful reunion ensues, and the trio figures out how to abide together. The man and the girl are light-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A sensitive, atmospheric story depicting the fragility and rewards of friendship. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 5, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-77657-409-4
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Gecko Press
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2022
Proving even pooped piggies are ready to party, this will make children want to join in.
A noisy barnyard is no place for a nap!
Poor pig, all he wants to do is take a short snooze. However, there seems to be something going on around him. Each of his farm friends is making noise of one kind or another. “Hen wants to saw.” “Dog wants to tap.” “Hog wants to hum.” Pig looks closer and closer to fainting from exhaustion until he spies some drinking straws and has an idea. He sinks himself in his mud puddle and breathes through a straw snorkel. He’s finally able to catch some Z’s…but all those barnyard noises had a purpose: prep for a piggy birthday celebration. So much for napping! Long’s entry in the I Like to Read series tells its simple tale in 47 words, nearly all of which are of the single-syllable, easy-to-sound-out variety. Bright pastel-and-primary full-bleed illustrations featuring big-eyed farm folk will keep eyes on the page during storytime or guided independent reading. The visual humor and the easy-reading text make this a winner for readers just starting out.
Proving even pooped piggies are ready to party, this will make children want to join in. (Early reader. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8234-2428-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 29, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2012
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
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