An enjoyable children’s book that should make better use of its educational aspects.
In this illustrated tale, a baby goose, the last of his clutch to hatch, learns the skills he’ll need to fit in with the other geese at the lake.
A mother goose has one egg left to hatch, but she worries it’s a dud. When it hatches while she’s taking her other goslings on a trip to the other side of the lake, the gosling’s Uncle Ray has to step in and help him get started. The mother and her other goslings are excited to meet the new baby when they return home, and the mother decides to name her only son Rufus, after his father. At first, he seems to be more rambunctious than his sisters, wanting only to swim and play rather than learn from his mother how to find the best grass and shelter. Finally, he begins to grow up a little and pay attention to his mother. The story, mostly told through dialogue between Rufus and his family, features cute, realistic illustrations of geese that children will enjoy, as well as settings done in a lovely watercolor style. Especially appealing is a spread of the goslings falling asleep; on the first page they’re curling up on the grass, and in the second they’ve tucked their heads under their wings and bunched up together to stay warm. Gummer’s story has a fairly effective lesson for why children should listen to parents and how, if children only do fun things like swimming all the time, they won’t learn the skills needed to become adults. However, the author could have strengthened this theme by focusing more on the results of Rufus’ actions; as is, conflicts are set up, but they don’t always have consequences, which might be a little confusing to small children. Finally, the story could have incorporated additional facts about geese—what they eat, how they sleep, whether they were preparing to fly south for the winter, etc.—to make the book more appealing for the classroom.
An enjoyable children’s book that should make better use of its educational aspects.Pub Date: March 25, 2013
ISBN: 978-1480800267
Page Count: 34
Publisher: ArchwayPublishing
Review Posted Online: June 25, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
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