Going to the post office, shopping for groceries, and taking the train might not seem like difficult tasks—unless you’re blind. Lang tells the story of Sarah Gregory Smith and her amazing guide dog, a Labrador named Perry. Told through his eyes, it follows them as they go through the events of their day, running errands, playing in the park, and visiting a school. It is not until Perry dreams that he reveals what has set them apart from many other guide dogs and their masters. It seems that Perry and Sarah walked 300 miles from Boston to New York, following country paths and small town sidewalks lined with crowds of cheering people and television cameras. Simple gouache paintings featuring large blocks of unbroken and unvaried color dominate each page. This layout forces the text to the bottom of every page, adding to the static feeling inspired by the rather stiffly posed paintings. The tale of Perry and his master is inspirational, but unfortunately, the rather bland illustrations do not do it justice. Young readers will be interested to read about the life of a guide dog from his own perspective, but they might not make it through the end of this ho-hum title. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-88106-647-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
What if the market was closed when you wanted to bake a pie? You could embark for Europe, learn Italian en route, and pick up some semolina wheat in Italy, an egg in France, kurundu bark for cinnamon in Sri Lanka, and an entire cow in England (butter) before coming home via Jamaica (sugar) and Vermont (apples). The expertly designed illustrations in which a dark-haired lass journeys by various means to these interesting places to get her groceries are lovely and lively, and the narrative, too, travels at a spritely pace. The journey is neither quite logical enough to be truly informative nor quite bizarre enough to be satisfyingly silly, while the rich, sweet recipe that's appended will take some adult assistance. Still, fun. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: May 2, 1994
ISBN: 0-679-83705-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1994
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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