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HALF OF AN ELEPHANT

Name: HALF OF AN ELEPHANT
Author: Gusti
ISBN: 1-933605-09-X

by Gusti & illustrated by Gusti ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2006

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In this odd import from an artist born in Argentina, the front and back halves of an elephant, split apart when the world suddenly divides, go in search of each other. As it happens, all of the other animals that they encounter have the “exact same” problem, so each demi-pachyderm tries out a succession of wildly mismatched new partners, from a worm to a flamingo. Gusti illustrates this twin odyssey with digital assemblages of cardboard and found junk connected with rusty screws; the elephant’s trunk is an old spring, its body two neatly separated pieces of weathered yellow board, the tail a small paintbrush. Just as the disparate parts get used to being alone, the world reunites and they find each other again—but, having tasted independence, they decide to remain separated. This is not likely to have a broad audience, but some children may pore over the clever visuals, and some enjoy the tale’s silly twists. (Picture book. 6-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2006

ISBN: 1-933605-09-X

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Kane Miller

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2006

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
FEMINIST KIDS
by Blanca Lacasa & Luis Amavisca ; translated by Cecilia Ross ; illustrated by Gusti

- BOOK REVIEW
THIS POOP IS MINE!
by Gusti ; illustrated by Gusti ; translated by Cecilia Ross

- BOOK REVIEW
WHEN MY DAD WENT TO THE JUNGLE
by Gusti ; illustrated by Anne Decis

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THE DOG THAT DUG FOR DINOSAURS

by Shirley Redmond & illustrated by Simon Sullivan ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 2004

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This easy reader for children reading at the fluency level recounts the story of a girl named Mary Ann Anning and her dog, Tray. They lived on the coast of England in the early 1800s, although the time frame is given only as “a long, long time ago.” Mary Ann and Tray became famous for their discoveries of fossils, including dinosaur bones. They discovered the first pterodactyl found in England, and the name was assigned to their fossil. The story focuses a little too much on the dog, and the title misses a great opportunity to completely acknowledge a girl accomplishing something important in the scientific world, especially in a much earlier era and without formal training or education. Despite this drawback, both Mary Ann and Tray are appealing characters and the discovery of the fossils and subsequent notice from scientists, collectors, and even royalty is appealing and well written. Sullivan’s illustrations provide intriguing period details in costumes, tools, and buildings, as well as a clever front endpaper of fossil-strewn ground covered with muddy paw prints. (Easy reader. 6-8)

Pub Date: July 1, 2004

ISBN: 0-689-85708-X

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Aladdin

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2004

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

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PROFESSOR ASTRO CAT'S SPACE ROCKETS

From the Professor Astro Cat series

by Dominic Walliman ; illustrated by Ben Newman ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 4, 2018

Energetic enough to carry younger rocketeers off the launch pad if not into a very high orbit.

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The bubble-helmeted feline explains what rockets do and the role they have played in sending people (and animals) into space.

Addressing a somewhat younger audience than in previous outings (Professor Astro Cat’s Frontiers of Space, 2013, etc.), Astro Cat dispenses with all but a light shower of “factoroids” to describe how rockets work. A highly selective “History of Space Travel” follows—beginning with a crew of fruit flies sent aloft in 1947, later the dog Laika (her dismal fate left unmentioned), and the human Yuri Gagarin. Then it’s on to Apollo 11 in 1969; the space shuttles Discovery, Columbia, and Challenger (the fates of the latter two likewise elided); the promise of NASA’s next-gen Orion and the Space Launch System; and finally vague closing references to other rockets in the works for local tourism and, eventually, interstellar travel. In the illustrations the spacesuited professor, joined by a mouse and cat in similar dress, do little except float in space and point at things. Still, the art has a stylish retro look, and portraits of Sally Ride and Guion Bluford diversify an otherwise all-white, all-male astronaut corps posing heroically or riding blocky, geometric spacecraft across starry reaches.

Energetic enough to carry younger rocketeers off the launch pad if not into a very high orbit. (glossary) (Informational picture book. 6-8)