by Dick King-Smith & illustrated by Nick Bruel ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2008
Another short, cozy animal (to use the term loosely) tale from the master of same. Here a polite, peaceable “slobbadunk” named Tumblerum Wollycobble—portrayed in Bruel’s many scenes and spots as a purple glob with blubbery lips and one big eye—forms a long association with married couple Og and Ut and their offspring, who are many-legged “gombrizils.” So grateful is Tum after Ut (the wife and, of course, the brains of the couple) cures its rumbustious digestion by adding meat (in the form of fat “swoots”) to its vegetarian diet and performs other favors, that it volunteers to tend both her own egg and the two that her daughter Okay lays years afterward. That’s about it for plot, but the names are so silly, and Bruel does such a masterful job of depicting the blobby cast (in spots the gombrizils look like proto-Simpsons) that early-reader graduates can’t help but break out in giggles. (Fantasy. 7-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-59643-325-0
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2008
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by Julie Sternberg and illustrated by Matthew Cordell ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2011
When Bibi, her first and favorite babysitter, moves away, it takes all of August for 8-year-old Eleanor to get beyond her sense of loss and get used to a new caretaker. Her parents grieve, too; her mother even takes some time off work. But, as is inevitable in a two-income family, eventually a new sitter appears. Natalie is sensible and understanding. They find new activities to do together, including setting up a lemonade stand outside Eleanor’s Brooklyn apartment building, waiting for Val, the mail carrier, and taking pictures of flowers with Natalie’s camera. Gradually Eleanor adjusts, September comes, her new teacher writes a welcoming letter, her best friend returns from summer vacation and third grade starts smoothly. Best of all, Val brings a loving letter from Bibi in Florida. While the story is relatively lengthy, each chapter is a self-contained episode, written simply and presented in short lines, accessible to those still struggling with the printed word. Cordell’s gray-scale line drawings reflect the action and help break up the text on almost every page. This first novel is a promising debut. Eleanor’s concerns, not only about her babysitter, but also about playmates, friends and a new school year will be familiar to readers, who will look forward to hearing more about her life. (Fiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8109-8424-0
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Feb. 10, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2011
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by Julie Sternberg ; illustrated by Fred Koehler
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by Julie Sternberg ; illustrated by Johanna Wright
by Rebecca Hainnu ; illustrated by Hwei Lim ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2015
A fresh, if not quite as seamless, alternative to Robert D. and Daniel San Souci’s Song of Sedna (1981).
A popular Inuit cautionary legend, featuring a haughty young woman and a gruesome climactic twist.
Arnaq will accept no suitor, until a shaman sea bird disguised as a handsome young man sweeps her away with glittering promises to a wretched, reeking tent on a distant shore. When her father arrives to rescue her, the shaman raises such a storm that her terrified dad casts her overboard—and cuts off her fingers to keep her from holding on to the boat. Those fingers are transformed into whales and seals, and she, into a testy spirit named Nuliajuq, who calls up storms on all who “disrespect the land or the sea.” This and other modern-sounding lines (“Eventually Arnaq succumbed to complete depression”) give the otherwise formal narrative a playfully anachronistic air that may or may not be intentional. Lim illustrates the tale in a realistic rather than stylized way, using flowing lines and brush strokes to depict natural settings, faces, Arnaq’s lustrous locks (and, though seen only from a distance, fingerless hands), and a range of accurately detailed arctic and sea animals. In an afterword, the author explains that the sea spirit goes by several regional names; a pronunciation guide to Inuktitut words in this version is also included.
A fresh, if not quite as seamless, alternative to Robert D. and Daniel San Souci’s Song of Sedna (1981). (Picture book/folk tale. 7-9)Pub Date: March 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-927095-75-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Inhabit Media
Review Posted Online: Jan. 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2015
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by Rebecca Hainnu ; illustrated by Qin Leng
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