At first glance, two people could hardly be less alike than that irrepressible inventor, Junior Blossom, and Mad Mary Cantrell, rural equivalent of a bag lady. Junior is a little boy from a close-knit, if impoverished, family, newly in touch with the world since last year's triumph in The Not-lust-Anybody Family, proud of his recently built coyote trap. Mad Mary went to school with his grandfather, back when she was the daughter of the town's wealthiest citizen; but, having lost home and family, she has escaped the trap of civilization and retreated to a mountain cave, subsisting, like a vulture, on small dead animals left by cars along the road. When Junior gets caught in his own trap, it is she who finds and rescues him; and while the community organizes to "rescue" him from her, the two become friends over shared fundamentals: a pot of stew, interest in the same books, and the discovery that each yearns to speak, if only for a few minutes, with a dead father. Trust Byars to come up with a story not like anyone else's and to tell it with lightness and humor, clarity and simplicity, extracting every bit of drama from small events. Young readers entranced by the lively plot won't notice her careful, economical structure, but they'll be touched by the humanity of her marvelously quirky characters (including the persistent dog, Mud, who gets his own subplot). Rogers' soft, full-page illustrations are just right, portraits of characters at significant moments. Not to be missed.
Pub Date: Oct. 3, 1986
ISBN: 0823421449
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: April 18, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1986
Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs.
The Heffley family’s house undergoes a disastrous attempt at home improvement.
When Great Aunt Reba dies, she leaves some money to the family. Greg’s mom calls a family meeting to determine what to do with their share, proposing home improvements and then overruling the family’s cartoonish wish lists and instead pushing for an addition to the kitchen. Before bringing in the construction crew, the Heffleys attempt to do minor maintenance and repairs themselves—during which Greg fails at the work in various slapstick scenes. Once the professionals are brought in, the problems keep getting worse: angry neighbors, terrifying problems in walls, and—most serious—civil permitting issues that put the kibosh on what work’s been done. Left with only enough inheritance to patch and repair the exterior of the house—and with the school’s dismal standardized test scores as a final straw—Greg’s mom steers the family toward moving, opening up house-hunting and house-selling storylines (and devastating loyal Rowley, who doesn’t want to lose his best friend). While Greg’s positive about the move, he’s not completely uncaring about Rowley’s action. (And of course, Greg himself is not as unaffected as he wishes.) The gags include effectively placed callbacks to seemingly incidental events (the “stress lizard” brought in on testing day is particularly funny) and a lampoon of after-school-special–style problem books. Just when it seems that the Heffleys really will move, a new sequence of chaotic trouble and property destruction heralds a return to the status quo. Whew.
Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs. (Graphic/fiction hybrid. 8-12)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3903-3
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2019
SEEN & HEARD
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
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