Children who have not yet gained a sense of irony will particularly enjoy the seemingly random but carefully delineated...
A modern master of surrealism presents an astonishing traveling circus.
A man is walking his dog along the highway at night. Coming toward them is a car pulling 10 flatbeds, each with a performance piece taking place upon it. The car is driven by the man’s cat, Pluto. The man is astonished and intrigued as he watches all the cars pass by and they then all move from the dark into the golden light of a desert mirage. It is all surreal, and Delessert is a master of visual absurdity. The human-sized cat who is driving the car looks more like a rat in cat’s clothing. The three clowns, named for Franz Kafka, Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco, sport their namesakes’ signatures: Franz is turning into a cockroach, and Eugene wears a rhinoceros’ horn. On another car, angels play chess with pieces that look familiar but not quite identifiable. The three little pigs (actually quite large) are about to cut into a wolf pie—the crust of which looks more sheeplike than anything else. A snow globe is filled with butterflies. The whole is neither dreamlike nor nightmarish but resides somewhere in that state where new words and old words and images come together and collide.
Children who have not yet gained a sense of irony will particularly enjoy the seemingly random but carefully delineated juxtaposition of image and idea. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: March 17, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-56846-277-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Creative Editions/Creative Company
Review Posted Online: Jan. 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2015
A solid sequel, easily accessible to readers who missed Volume 1.
A fictionalized young Shaquille O'Neal returns for a second illustrated story about life beyond the basketball court.
Little Shaq and his cousin Barry come home from the rec center giddy about Little Shaq's first three-point shot but are greeted with another surprise. For the first time, Little Shaq's mom has made sushi for a family dinner. Barry and the others dig in, but Little Shaq's curiosity about sushi only hits him after the last roll is gone. Little Shaq's joy and confidence on the court—best expressed when Little Shaq exuberantly tosses a postgame grape into Barry's mouth ("Three points!")—contrast strongly with his unease trying new foods or activities. A large part of the book concerns a school art project, and Little Shaq's frustration is made poignantly clear through both illustration and description ("Little Shaq crumpled up his drawing and marched back to the supply tables"). Throughout, the love among Little Shaq's family members shines through in their interactions, and the story delivers a message without triteness. Taylor’s full-color illustrations break up text on almost every page, adding warmth and energy. (Final art not seen.)
A solid sequel, easily accessible to readers who missed Volume 1. (Fiction. 5-8)Pub Date: April 26, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-61963-844-0
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
A conflict-resolution story that may well inspire young sports lovers to garden—or young gardeners to pick up a basketball.
An argument between Little Shaq and his cousin Barry turns the two young basketball players into gardeners.
After Little Shaq makes a spectacular play in a basketball game at the rec center, Barry storms away mad. Astute readers will, like Little Shaq's next-door neighbor Rosa, recognize Barry's reason before Little Shaq does: rather than pass the ball to Barry when he called for it, Little Shaq ignored him, keeping the fun and the glory for himself. When Little Shaq's self-centered behavior rears its head again in a video gaming session, Barry throws his controller in frustration, breaking the game disc. After a fortuitous gardening lesson at school and an intervention by Little Shaq's dad, the boys launch a plan together to earn money for a replacement game. The boys' pride in their work shines through both the text and the artwork, and the basic elements of planting and watering are conveyed simply and effectively. There are lively, full-color illustrations throughout, some full-page, many playfully interspersed with the text. A community gathering to refurbish the rec center's garden—and eat a neighbor's homegrown tomato salsa—provides a feel-good finale to this above-average celebrity vehicle.
A conflict-resolution story that may well inspire young sports lovers to garden—or young gardeners to pick up a basketball. (Fiction. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 6, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-61963-7214
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
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