by Frank Remkiewicz & illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 1995
A story brimming with mimicry and mockery about Fiona, a flamingo who misses ``an important left turn'' and is separated from the flock; she lands on a banana boat whose captain has a flair for hip-hop: ``Well, crash my boat/and make me nervous!/I'm the Rappin' Cap'n/at your service.'' As she leaves the boat with the egg she has just laid, Fiona starts rapping herself, and she doesn't stop until she has walked all the way to Bolivia, passing different dangerous animals on the way. She reaches her flock and her husband, Fletcher, just as her egg hatches and out comes little Floyd, already singing his own rap songs. Remkiewicz's cartoons are full of bright, tropical colors, and his animals are real characters. But above all, the tall and thin Fiona (reminiscent of Olive Oyl) is an ideal subject for comic postures. The lickety- split text—half-prose, half rapping—has a witty, colloquial feel, and not one dull moment. Especially during the rap bits, readers will want to chant it out loud. Kids will love this book. (Picture book. 4+)
Pub Date: March 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-688-13145-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1995
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More by Jonathan London
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by Jonathan London ; illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz
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by Jonathan London ; illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz
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by Jamie Michalak ; illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz
by Pete Seeger & Paul Dubois Jacobs & illustrated by Michael Hays ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2001
The seemingly ageless Seeger brings back his renowned giant for another go in a tuneful tale that, like the art, is a bit sketchy, but chockful of worthy messages. Faced with yearly floods and droughts since they’ve cut down all their trees, the townsfolk decide to build a dam—but the project is stymied by a boulder that is too huge to move. Call on Abiyoyo, suggests the granddaughter of the man with the magic wand, then just “Zoop Zoop” him away again. But the rock that Abiyoyo obligingly flings aside smashes the wand. How to avoid Abiyoyo’s destruction now? Sing the monster to sleep, then make it a peaceful, tree-planting member of the community, of course. Seeger sums it up in a postscript: “every community must learn to manage its giants.” Hays, who illustrated the original (1986), creates colorful, if unfinished-looking, scenes featuring a notably multicultural human cast and a towering Cubist fantasy of a giant. The song, based on a Xhosa lullaby, still has that hard-to-resist sing-along potential, and the themes of waging peace, collective action, and the benefits of sound ecological practices are presented in ways that children will both appreciate and enjoy. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-83271-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2001
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More by Pete Seeger
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by Pete Seeger & Paul Dubois Jacobs & illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
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by Pete Seeger & Paul Dubois Jacobs & illustrated by Michael Hays
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adapted by Pete Seeger & illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin
by Janice Boland & illustrated by G. Brian Karas ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1996
A book that will make young dog-owners smile in recognition and confirm dogless readers' worst suspicions about the mayhem caused by pets, even winsome ones. Sam, who bears passing resemblance to an affable golden retriever, is praised for fetching the family newspaper, and goes on to fetch every other newspaper on the block. In the next story, only the children love Sam's swimming; he is yelled at by lifeguards and fishermen alike when he splashes through every watering hole he can find. Finally, there is woe to the entire family when Sam is bored and lonely for one long night. Boland has an essential message, captured in both both story and illustrations of this Easy-to-Read: Kids and dogs belong together, especially when it's a fun-loving canine like Sam. An appealing tale. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8037-1530-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1996
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