by Brian P. Cleary & illustrated by Brian Gable ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2003
Continuing with their successful Words Are Categorical series, Cleary and Gable (Under, Over, by the Clover: What Is a Preposition?, 2002, etc.) use humorous cats to illuminate another part of speech in this fifth entry in the series. Cleary has clearly got the formula down for effectively explaining a potentially boring subject through a bouncy rhyming text filled with puns and jokes that will appeal to kids. He manages to define adverbs and their multiple uses, provide a wide variety of examples in context, and even contrast the use of the adjective “good” versus the adverb “well” (with the obligatory pun about well being a deep subject). Gable’s cartoon-style cats are shown cavorting in sunglasses and hats, riding bikes and skateboards, or flying through the air in superhero style. Each page uses a different shade of background color in appealing hues that contrast with the colorful cats. The typeface is a jazzy style that suits the format well, with the many adverbs printed in a contrasting bright shade. Though targeting students in upper-elementary classrooms, this series will also be used by clever English teachers in junior high or high school or by ESL teachers. Ruth Heller’s stellar series on the parts of speech remains the gold standard on the subject, but more kids will connect with Cleary and Gable’s cool cats. (Nonfiction. 8+)
Pub Date: March 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-87614-924-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Carolrhoda
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2003
Share your opinion of this book
More by Brian P. Cleary
BOOK REVIEW
by Brian P. Cleary ; illustrated by Brian P. Cleary
BOOK REVIEW
by Brian P. Cleary ; illustrated by Pablo Pino
BOOK REVIEW
by Brian P. Cleary ; illustrated by Carol Crimmins
by Andrew Clements & illustrated by Brian Selznick ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1996
With comically realistic black-and-white illustrations by Selznick (The Robot King, 1995, etc.), this is a captivating...
Nicholas is a bright boy who likes to make trouble at school, creatively.
When he decides to torment his fifth-grade English teacher, Mrs. Granger (who is just as smart as he is), by getting everyone in the class to replace the word "pen'' with "frindle,'' he unleashes a series of events that rapidly spins out of control. If there's any justice in the world, Clements (Temple Cat, 1995, etc.) may have something of a classic on his hands. By turns amusing and adroit, this first novel is also utterly satisfying. The chess-like sparring between the gifted Nicholas and his crafty teacher is enthralling, while Mrs. Granger is that rarest of the breed: a teacher the children fear and complain about for the school year, and love and respect forever after.
With comically realistic black-and-white illustrations by Selznick (The Robot King, 1995, etc.), this is a captivating tale—one to press upon children, and one they'll be passing among themselves. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-689-80669-8
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1996
Share your opinion of this book
More by Andrew Clements
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
by Andrew Clements & illustrated by Mark Elliott
by Neil Gaiman ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 2002
Not for the faint-hearted—who are mostly adults anyway—but for stouthearted kids who love a brush with the sinister:...
A magnificently creepy fantasy pits a bright, bored little girl against a soul-eating horror that inhabits the reality right next door.
Coraline’s parents are loving, but really too busy to play with her, so she amuses herself by exploring her family’s new flat. A drawing-room door that opens onto a brick wall becomes a natural magnet for the curious little girl, and she is only half-surprised when, one day, the door opens onto a hallway and Coraline finds herself in a skewed mirror of her own flat, complete with skewed, button-eyed versions of her own parents. This is Gaiman’s (American Gods, 2001, etc.) first novel for children, and the author of the Sandman graphic novels here shows a sure sense of a child’s fears—and the child’s ability to overcome those fears. “I will be brave,” thinks Coraline. “No, I am brave.” When Coraline realizes that her other mother has not only stolen her real parents but has also stolen the souls of other children before her, she resolves to free her parents and to find the lost souls by matching her wits against the not-mother. The narrative hews closely to a child’s-eye perspective: Coraline never really tries to understand what has happened or to fathom the nature of the other mother; she simply focuses on getting her parents back and thwarting the other mother for good. Her ability to accept and cope with the surreality of the other flat springs from the child’s ability to accept, without question, the eccentricity and arbitrariness of her own—and every child’s own—reality. As Coraline’s quest picks up its pace, the parallel world she finds herself trapped in grows ever more monstrous, generating some deliciously eerie descriptive writing.
Not for the faint-hearted—who are mostly adults anyway—but for stouthearted kids who love a brush with the sinister: Coraline is spot on. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: July 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-380-97778-8
Page Count: 176
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2002
Share your opinion of this book
More by Neil Gaiman
BOOK REVIEW
by Neil Gaiman ; illustrated by Various
BOOK REVIEW
by Neil Gaiman ; illustrated by Chris Riddell
BOOK REVIEW
by Neil Gaiman ; illustrated by Divya Srinivasan
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.