adapted by Charlotte Craft ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1999
PLB 0-688-13166-2 King Midas And The Golden Touch ($16.00; PLB $15.63; Apr.; 32 pp.; 0-688-13165-4; PLB 0-688-13166-2): The familiar tale of King Midas gets the golden touch in the hands of Craft and Craft (Cupid and Psyche, 1996). The author takes her inspiration from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s retelling, capturing the essence of the tale with the use of pithy dialogue and colorful description. Enchanting in their own right, the illustrations summon the Middle Ages as a setting, and incorporate colors so lavish that when they are lost to the uniform gold spurred by King Midas’s touch, the point of the story is further burnished. (Picture book. 7-9)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-688-13165-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1999
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by Mayra Montero & translated by Edith Grossman ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 1997
In The Palm Of Darkness ($21.00; May 1997; 192 pp.; 0-06-018703- 4): A Cuban writers's intensely imaginative portrait of the extremities of Haitian culture rings some fresh changes on the overfamiliar theme of intellectual arrogance humbled by its collision with ``elemental'' peasant wisdom. Montero subtly builds up a revealing contrast between Victor Griggs, a European herpetologist searching for the remaining specimens of an endangered species of amphibian, and his native guide Thierry Adrien's memories of his family's encounter with the island's ubiquitous spirits. This truly original novel is studded with surprises—not least of which is the concept of a species suddenly and entirely disappearing in a milieu where the living and the dead are known to mingle together more or less matter-of-factly. A refreshingly sophisticated treat. (Author tour)
Pub Date: May 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-06-018703-4
Page Count: 192
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1997
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More by Mayra Montero
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by Mayra Montero & translated by Edith Grossman
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by Mayra Montero & translated by Edith Grossman
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by Mayra Montero & translated by Edith Grossman
by Jennifer Rees Larcombe ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 1999
It’s hard to imagine US children responding enthusiastically to this heavy-handed series of short stories with a strong British flavor. In “Auntie Peggy’s Windmill,” an eccentric aunt steps in to care for her niece and nephew when their parents are injured in an automobile accident. Odd but good-hearted, Auntie Peggy engages in ongoing conversations with God that serve to encourage the children and, ultimately their parents, to become believers in the efficacy of prayer. “The Park People” details the interactions of children and adults who live in a semi-circle of homes facing a small park area. Each of these stories tackles a real problem, from bullying to childhood depression, but they are inhabited by shallow characters, and resolved simplistically. (Fiction. 6-9)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-551-03207-3
Page Count: 187
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1999
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