A low-conflict, quiet book with an intriguing mix of illustrations and a message about not worrying too much about the...
A mouse fears the loss of his woodpile home—and the cat who stalks him outside it—in this picture book for beginning readers by debut author/illustrator Ericsson.
Jimey, a small, white rodent—pictured as having a triangular head, a triangular body, and two large, oval-shaped ears—lives in a woodpile on Farmer Karson’s farm. He loves his home: it keeps him dry, warm, and safe from Kloee, a tuxedo cat illustrated in a similar, geometric fashion. As winter approaches, the woodpile becomes smaller and smaller, and Jimey begins to wonder what will happen if it vanishes altogether. But when the mouse is at his lowest, he hears a crashing sound and finds that not only has his woodpile been replenished, but also that the farmer has been watching over him. The allegorical tone of Farmer Karson’s statement (“There’s no need to be afraid, my friend. I’ve been looking out for you all along”) is reminiscent of tales in which a loving God watches over his followers, but the focus of the book is appropriately on Jimey’s joys and fears. At first glance, readers may find the two distinct illustration styles to be dissonant—the geometric patterns of Jimey and Kloee, and the background images, which have an altered, photographic quality. But by the end, the contrast seems to fit the story. Ericsson also includes seek-and-find pages at the end of the book, encouraging young readers to look for recurring details, such as a ladybug that appears on several pages, or a teddy bear in Jimey’s home. For readers who need larger print, the author enlarges images and clearly prints the word that represents them below. The density of the text may be a hurdle for beginning readers, but the vocabulary is well-suited to its age group. Youngsters will be happy for Jimey when his woodpile is restored.
A low-conflict, quiet book with an intriguing mix of illustrations and a message about not worrying too much about the future.Pub Date: July 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-9903539-0-4
Page Count: 48
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
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