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TO ROOT, TO TOOT, TO PARACHUTE

WHAT IS A VERB?

Corny, looping lists of words figure again in Cleary's latest "Words Are Categorical" book. Working in rhyme, Cleary presents a flurry of verbs to readers—often in humorous juxtaposition—and a sprinkling of grammatical rules. "Whether you scale a wall or a fish, / Make a design on a cup or a dish, / Take out the garbage, or sharpen your knife— / Verbs are apart of your everyday life." There are a lot of verbs here, often coming at the reader in relentless waves, which Prosmitsky endeavors to make merry with her cartoon cast of dizzy cats. "Verbs are words like sing and dance, / Pray or practice, preach or prance, / Toss and tumble, jump and jam, / Whine and whisper, sleep and slam." Prosmitsky provides loads of visual clues as to the action that is taking place, and colored type cues readers as to which word is the verb. There is no denying that through all the goofery, a notion of verbs comes through, if from nothing other than inundation. A final page is provided for kids to test their newfound ability to identify the word showing the action or being. (Picture book. 7-9)

Pub Date: March 1, 2001

ISBN: 1-57505-403-5

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Carolrhoda

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2001

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THUNDER ROSE

Nolen and Nelson offer a smaller, but no less gifted counterpart to Big Jabe (2000) in this new tall tale. Shortly after being born one stormy night, Rose thanks her parents, picks a name, and gathers lightning into a ball—all of which is only a harbinger of feats to come. Decked out in full cowboy gear and oozing self-confidence from every pore, Rose cuts a diminutive, but heroic figure in Nelson’s big, broad Western scenes. Though she carries a twisted iron rod as dark as her skin and ropes clouds with fencing wire, Rose overcomes her greatest challenge—a pair of rampaging twisters—not with strength, but with a lullaby her parents sang. After turning tornadoes into much-needed rain clouds, Rose rides away, “that mighty, mighty song pressing on the bull’s-eye that was set at the center of her heart.” Throughout, she shows a reflective bent that gives her more dimension than most tall-tale heroes: a doff of the Stetson to her and her creators. (author’s note) (Picture book. 7-9)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2003

ISBN: 0-15-216472-3

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Silver Whistle/Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2003

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SERENA KATZ

All of Elmsville is excited to hear that Mr. Duncan and his family are off to N.Y.C. to visit the great Serena Katz—but is she who they think she is? The postmistress remembers her as ``the Katz Meow,'' the West Side's best pool-player; a neighbor as a show-stopping magician; another as the creator of fabulous wedding cakes; and yet another as ``Krazy Katz,'' motorcycle racer. Mr. Duncan knows only that she runs a hardware store and buys his paint. Alley, whose watercolors are, as usual, lively and well-crafted, does a wonderful job of building anticipation, depicting everyone's memories but showing only a glimpse of Serena Katz's hand or foot in each scene. When at last the Duncans reach her door, they find a pleasant little old lady in sneakers who briskly sends them on a whirlwind tour of the city. Are the stories about her true? Oh, yes, and more besides. Has she left all that behind? Not likely: the spirit of adventure is ageless. A treat for readers who find Miss Rumphius a bit too genteel. (Picture book. 7-9)

Pub Date: March 31, 1992

ISBN: 0-02-744901-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1992

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