Overall, this misses the mark and won’t wing its way to success.
A rhymed text explores the imaginary places where a book can transport a reader.
“It has pages and pictures, / a cover, it’s true, / even words and a writer— / and readers like you. / It can do anything / that you want it to do. / But this is not a book. // Because books do not have wings.” All kinds of magical things can be found in the pages of this not-a-book. Readers whirl up a complicated agglomeration of gears into the clouds to clockwork cities and a pirate ship, as the text continues his protestations that it is not a book. Text notwithstanding, it’s the artwork that evokes the imagination and captures the eye as two children, one dark-skinned with short, black, curly hair and the other fair-skinned with long, blond hair, experience various adventures. The illustrations blend the quirkiness of Henrik Drescher with the detailing of Graeme Base in vivid colors and intriguing images. The rhymes tend to get in the way of the images they are describing, however. “This, here, is a submarine, / a never-look-back, pretend-it machine, / to explore the depths / of the vast marine / with urchins, seaweed, / and schools of sardines. / Come closer, dear reader, / and see the unseen— / this thing that’s not a book.” The repetition of the title phrase feels both precious and monotonous, muddying the conceit—which stands a very good chance of actually confusing readers.
Overall, this misses the mark and won’t wing its way to success. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-58536-964-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
No substitutes for more traditional renditions—but not spoiled by the alterations, either.
Chicken Little may not be “the brightest chicken in the coop,” but he’s definitely not the only birdbrain in this version of the classic tale.
In East’s cartoon illustrations, Chicken Little leads the familiar crew of feathered followers (including Henny Penny, who often is the one to take the acorn on the noggin in other versions) in a comically frantic dash to find the king. But so badly does the decidedly shifty-looking Foxy Loxy bungle the climactic nab that not only do the birds escape, but Foxy is trucked off behind bars while the king calms the kerfuffle by pointing to the perfectly intact sky. The fox does better in the co-published Gingerbread Man, illustrated by Miriam Latimer, as he gobbles down his sugary treat—after which the lonely bakers take all the other hungry animals home for a “fantastic feast” of cakes and pastries. In Rumpelstiltskin, illustrated by Loretta Schauer, though the scraggly-bearded little man only has to spin straw into gold for one night, Alperin mostly sticks to the traditional plotline and ultimately sends him through the floor and into the royal dungeon so that baby Hugo and his parents live happily ever after. The illustrations in all three of these uniform editions share traditional settings, all-white humans, and bright, simple looks. The retellings are aimed at younger audiences, though by cutting the cumulative language in Chicken Little and Gingerbread Man to a minimum, the author drains some of the distinctive tone and character from those folk tales.
No substitutes for more traditional renditions—but not spoiled by the alterations, either. (Picture book/folk tale. 5-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-58925-476-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Here is Poppleton at his brief, mellow, sentimental best, mooning over the pleasure of friends in the coziest of settings. Accompanied by artwork that presents Poppleton as a lovable porker with a hint of the rascal in his body language, Rylant’s (The High-Rise Private Eyes, p. 964, etc.) first story finds Poppleton going solo to the movies. At first this seems a nifty idea—no having to share the eats—but fast becomes an exercise in loneliness, as Poppleton has no one to share the laughs and shivers and tears with. It is always better to have a friend to join in the fun, he concludes. Next, Poppleton and three pals have a quilting bee, during which they entertain each other with stories about their respective pasts, and images from the stories get sewn into the quilt, as if by osmosis. Afterward, they take turns using the quilt: “Poppleton got it in summer. Fillmore got it in fall. Cherry Sue got it in winter. And Hudson got it in spring. Every season of the year, someone was sleeping under stories.” Lastly, Poppleton runs out of bath emollients—nothing he liked better than a soak with lavender, lemon, and silky milk—so he visits Cherry Sue to see if he can borrow some. She only takes showers, but offers him some sweet smells from the kitchen: Blueberries? Vanilla? Cinnamon? No, says Poppleton, but lets go get something to eat. “Poppleton missed his soak that day. But it was okay. He was very happy smelling like a banana split.” Poppleton is a darling, especially so in these stories, which can be favorably paired with tales in which he is a bit more of a rogue element. (Easy reader. 5-7)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-590-84839-9
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2000
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