A club-shaped pumpkin gets dissed by a customer, all the other pumpkins, even twisted apple trees, before the sight of a motley crop of hubbards, acorns and banana squash brings on a personal epiphany: “O my gosh / I’m a squash.” Endowed with a face and stick limbs, the gnarled narrator sits down at a Thanksgiving table with its new soulmates, then is last seen strolling down the lane hand in hand with a lumpy new friend. Written in doggerel—“A skeleton came for pumpkins / one bright and crispy day. / I asked if I could get a ride . . . / He laughed and said: No Way”—and illustrated in brightly colored paint-and-paper collage, this weak riff on the “Ugly Duckling” may not earn high marks for botanical accuracy (all pumpkins are squash), but it does feature plenty of visual flash. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-399-24267-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2005
Categories: CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
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The leaves have changed, Thanksgiving nears—and the canny turkeys of Squawk Valley have decamped, leaving local residents to face the prospect of a birdless holiday. What to do? They decide to lure a bird back by appealing to its vanity, placing a want ad for a model to help sculptors creating turkey art, then “inviting” the bird to dinner. The ploy works, too, for out of the woods struts plump and perky Pete to take on the job. Shelly debuts with brightly hued cartoon scenes featuring pop-eyed country folk and deceptively silly-looking gobblers. Pete may be vain, but he hasn’t lost the wiliness of his wild ancestors; when the townsfolk come for him, he hides amidst a flock of sculpted gobblers—“There were turkeys made of spuds, / there were turkeys made of rope. / There were turkeys made of paper, / there were turkeys made of soap. / The room was full of turkeys / in a wall to wall collage. / For a clever bird like Pete / it was perfect camouflage.” He makes his escape, and is last seen lounging on a turkey-filled tropical beach as the disappointed Squawk Valleyites gather round the table for a main course of . . . shredded wheat. Good for a few giggles. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2001
ISBN: 1-890817-91-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2001
Categories: CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
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Craft's first book is a retelling of the famous story of Psyche, who is so beautiful that Venus, the goddess of beauty, is jealous. She sends her son, Cupid, to punish the mortal, but he falls in love with her. When Psyche fails to trust that love, she must perform seemingly impossible tasks to win Cupid back. The text flows smoothly and retains a touch of formality, giving the story a suitably ancient resonance. The radiant oil- over-watercolor paintings are exquisitely detailed, filled with intricacies that reward long and careful scrutiny. The design of the book is meticulous, from an unusual, yet readable, typeface to the ornate borders, some of which resemble gold jewelry more than paintings. (Picture book/folklore. 6-8)
Pub Date: June 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-688-13163-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1996
Categories: CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
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