From the adapter of The Fire Children (p. 788), a tale that explains how man came to possess fire. A drab but determined parrot snatches a firestick from Crocodile Man, its sole owner, while he's sleeping; the magnanimous bird flies ``around the country putting Fire into the heart of every tree'' so that people can make fire from dry wood. In the process, she becomes rainbow-colored, as she is today. A simple story, tightly told, and best read aloud to savor its sounds and rhythms. As in Hadithi's Baby Baboon (p. 661), Kennaway's paintings are brilliantly colored, dramatic, large, and clear—ideal for use with groups. Close inspection is rewarding, too, revealing termite mounds in the bare red soil and little green ants busy in the branches of a tree. There hasn't been a scarier crocodile since the one that ate Captain Hook. (Folklore/Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-316-54314-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1993
Lazy Jamie O'Rourke doesn't lift a finger, even after his wife hurts her hack digging the "praties" they depend on; but he does catch a leprechaun, who gives him a seed that grows into a potato so large that it takes the combined efforts of the village to dig it and, subsequently, to eat it—"until no one wanted to see or hear of potato again." DePaola's "Note About the Story" tells more of his own family history than of "the short tale that inspired" this one, which is totally unsourced; presumably, it predates the tragedy of the Potato Famine. Anyway, as retold here, it makes a cheery picture book, with the artist using the lighter, brighter side of his palette and including some affectionate caricatures of the Irish in his decorative illustrations. Attractive and amusing. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 20, 1992
ISBN: 0-399-22257-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1991
An impending school visit by a celebrity chef sends budding cook Ollie into a tailspin. He and his classmates are supposed to bring a favorite family food for show and tell, but his family doesn’t have a clear choice—besides, his little sister Rosy doesn’t like much of anything. What to do? As in their previous two visits to Room 75, Kenah builds suspense while keeping the tone light, and Carter adds both bright notes of color and familiar home and school settings in her cartoon illustrations. Eventually, Ollie winkles favorite ingredients out of his clan, which he combines into a mac-and-cheese casserole with a face on top that draws delighted praise from the class’s renowned guest. As Ollie seems to do his kitchen work without parental assistance, a cautionary tip or two (and maybe a recipe) might not have gone amiss here, but the episode’s mouthwatering climax and resolution will guarantee smiles of contentment all around. (Easy reader. 6-7)
Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-06-053561-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2007
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