An atmosphere of restrained grief and quiet struggle suffuses this almost inspirational story from Howard (A Different Kind of Courage, p. 170, etc.) that draws on the experiences of 19th- century pioneers. The story opens as Elvirey's family—grandmother, father, sister, and brother—buries her mother and leaves Carolina by wagon for Michigan. Their father is against bringing along Mam's things- -``There ain't no room for suchlike,'' Pap says. Granny defiantly brings along a bag of quilting scraps, saying, ``I aim to set on it.'' After a long trip west, they clear the land and build a log cabin, but it never feels like home. One cold fall day Pap leaves them all to go hunting. Night falls and the cabin grows colder and lonelier. As the moss and dirt between the logs freeze and fall out, Elvirey chinks the walls with fabric scraps, making the ``log cabin quilt'' of the title. Pap, on his return, says, ``Your mam would be proud. The place is downright homey.'' Elvirey observes that it isn't the scraps but ``Mam's name said out loud'' that makes the cabin home. Himler's soft pencil and watercolor paintings show unusual grace and are most affecting in the spot illustrations and exterior scenes. The interiors are darker, and quite accurately, muddier. This meditation on a small triumph over loss will add humanity to school units on the pioneers. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1996
ISBN: 0-8234-1247-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1996
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
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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