From Rylant (Dog Heaven, p. 951, etc.), a fourth pairing of good-natured Mr. Putter and sidekick Tabby. The old cat has a cranky tail that's too stiff to swish and the old man has cranky legs that can't get up a ladder. Unable to get to his juicy pears for some yearned-for pear jelly, Mr. Putter rigs a slingshot out of underwear elastic and``ZING!!!!!''fires off a fallen apple. Instead of knocking a pear off the tree, it whizzes over his rooftop and out of sight. Delighted with his ``jiffy arms,'' Mr. Putter forgets all about the pears, and zings into the night. The next day, neighborly Mrs. Teaberry reaps an unexpected bounty (``I don't even have an apple tree!'') and surprises Mr. Putter with feast of apple preparations. A funny, easy-going beginning reader, with quirky, always affectionate, cartoons. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-15-200245-6
Page Count: 44
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1995
Big Brown Bear, with a natty bowler hat, is all set to paint the house in this cheerful Level 1 reader. Every page presents a full-color scene and a few words of easily predicted, often rhyming text: “Bear is big. Bear is brown. Bear goes up. He comes down.” Big Bear climbs a ladder with a pail of blue paint, while nearby, Little Bear plays with a ball and bat—“Oh no! Little Bear! Do not do that!” These are simple words, but sometimes challenging ones, e.g., there are two uses of up, as in climbing the ladder and washing up. The pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations provide nearly ideal context, while also amplifying the story. The format is attractive and practical, featuring large type on a white background that is placed for easy reading. Beginning readers will be amused by the gentle humor in the book, and feel accomplished to have tackled it themselves. (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201999-5
Page Count: 20
Publisher: Green Light/Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1999
This feels far more like a parable for adults than a picture book for children, who may also miss the elegance of the New...
The big city is clearly New York, but it’s a grayed and sepia city sometime in the late 1940s, judging from the cars and clothing.
Elliot is a small, polka-dot elephant who loves his city even though it is hard for him to catch a cab or even open a door. (And he does the dishes by sitting in the sink with them.) He’s too little to be seen when he tries to buy his favorite treat, a cupcake, and that makes him sad. But he sees a tiny, very hungry mouse trying desperately to scale a trash bin for scraps. He manages to help get Mouse something to eat, and lo! He feels “like the tallest elephant in the world!” With Mouse’s help, the next day he gets that cupcake. The last image peers through Elliot’s window to find him and Mouse sharing it. The Flatiron Building, brownstone steps and the Empire State Building are clearly recognizable, giving the story Big Apple authenticity. The art has its own meticulous beauty, but the story is more saccharine than sweet—rather like too much frosting on a cupcake. The endpapers are a lush repetitive pattern of variegated cupcakes, with cameos by Elliot and Mouse.
This feels far more like a parable for adults than a picture book for children, who may also miss the elegance of the New York City images in their dark, soft palette. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 2, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-8050-9825-9
Page Count: 42
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2014
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