adapted by Erik Haugaard & illustrated by Haugaard Masako & Birgitta Saflund ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 1, 1991
An introductory note explains that the story of Odysseus, as told in Japan by 16th-century European traders or missionaries, was adopted and became a ``native tale.'' Haugaard, an expatriate Dane well-known for his trenchant historical fiction (The Little Fishes, 1967), here joins his Japanese wife in retelling the result, which retains the epic's essential frame but omits the hero's lengthy, adventurous journey. Yuriwaka, sent by the Emperor to quell marauders on the distant island of Kyushu, is on his way home with two trusted officers when they treacherously abandon him on another island, stealing his ship and his iron bow. With the help of his remarkable hawk, he manages to communicate with his faithful wife, imprisoned by the traitor she has refused to wed; eventually, a fisherman takes Yuriwaka home to reveal himself and take his vengeance in an archery contest, using the purloined bow. Told straightforwardly and with little embellishment, the story's lively events hold interest, especially as a variant of the Greek version. The format is unusually appealing, with crisp b&w illustrations combining decorative stylized motifs with more realistic characterizations; there are also three handsome double spreads in color. An unusual multicultural contribution. (Folklore. 8-12)
Pub Date: Dec. 1, 1991
ISBN: 1-879373-02-5
Page Count: 42
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1991
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by Hans Christian Andersen & translated by Erik Haugaard & illustrated by Arlene Graston
by Andrew Clements & illustrated by Brian Selznick ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1996
With comically realistic black-and-white illustrations by Selznick (The Robot King, 1995, etc.), this is a captivating...
Nicholas is a bright boy who likes to make trouble at school, creatively.
When he decides to torment his fifth-grade English teacher, Mrs. Granger (who is just as smart as he is), by getting everyone in the class to replace the word "pen'' with "frindle,'' he unleashes a series of events that rapidly spins out of control. If there's any justice in the world, Clements (Temple Cat, 1995, etc.) may have something of a classic on his hands. By turns amusing and adroit, this first novel is also utterly satisfying. The chess-like sparring between the gifted Nicholas and his crafty teacher is enthralling, while Mrs. Granger is that rarest of the breed: a teacher the children fear and complain about for the school year, and love and respect forever after.
With comically realistic black-and-white illustrations by Selznick (The Robot King, 1995, etc.), this is a captivating tale—one to press upon children, and one they'll be passing among themselves. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-689-80669-8
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1996
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BOOK REVIEW
by Andrew Clements & illustrated by Mark Elliott
by Neil Gaiman ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 2002
Not for the faint-hearted—who are mostly adults anyway—but for stouthearted kids who love a brush with the sinister:...
A magnificently creepy fantasy pits a bright, bored little girl against a soul-eating horror that inhabits the reality right next door.
Coraline’s parents are loving, but really too busy to play with her, so she amuses herself by exploring her family’s new flat. A drawing-room door that opens onto a brick wall becomes a natural magnet for the curious little girl, and she is only half-surprised when, one day, the door opens onto a hallway and Coraline finds herself in a skewed mirror of her own flat, complete with skewed, button-eyed versions of her own parents. This is Gaiman’s (American Gods, 2001, etc.) first novel for children, and the author of the Sandman graphic novels here shows a sure sense of a child’s fears—and the child’s ability to overcome those fears. “I will be brave,” thinks Coraline. “No, I am brave.” When Coraline realizes that her other mother has not only stolen her real parents but has also stolen the souls of other children before her, she resolves to free her parents and to find the lost souls by matching her wits against the not-mother. The narrative hews closely to a child’s-eye perspective: Coraline never really tries to understand what has happened or to fathom the nature of the other mother; she simply focuses on getting her parents back and thwarting the other mother for good. Her ability to accept and cope with the surreality of the other flat springs from the child’s ability to accept, without question, the eccentricity and arbitrariness of her own—and every child’s own—reality. As Coraline’s quest picks up its pace, the parallel world she finds herself trapped in grows ever more monstrous, generating some deliciously eerie descriptive writing.
Not for the faint-hearted—who are mostly adults anyway—but for stouthearted kids who love a brush with the sinister: Coraline is spot on. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: July 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-380-97778-8
Page Count: 176
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2002
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More by Neil Gaiman
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by Neil Gaiman ; illustrated by Various
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by Neil Gaiman ; illustrated by Chris Riddell
BOOK REVIEW
by Neil Gaiman ; illustrated by Divya Srinivasan
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