Kirkus Reviews QR Code
THE PERFECT PURPLE FEATHER by Hanoch Piven

THE PERFECT PURPLE FEATHER

by Hanoch Piven & illustrated by Hanoch Piven

Pub Date: Sept. 1st, 2002
ISBN: 0-316-76657-7
Publisher: Megan Tingley/Little, Brown

The intriguing cover of a bluebird composed of scissors forming head and beak, two fish forks serving as legs that support an intensely blue painted banana that makes the body, grabs attention and stages the visual game here. A feather poking him in the head awakens a boy. In rhyme, various creatures want the feather each for a different use: the bluebird needs it for a wing; the catty cat to look chic; the ant for a boat sail; an owl for a pen. After a porcupine, centipede, dog, and tiger, last is a tick that uses the feather to tickle an elephant’s nose, which sneezes the feather out into the night. The photographs of three-dimensional collages created from found objects are playful: the centipede body’s a wooden comb; the owl is made up of computer motherboards; many tools and metal objects form the critters. Originally published in Israel, the story provides the vehicle for the creative artwork. The lines of text in different colors contrast with the dark backgrounds. The gimmick that wraps it up is a purple feather that is enclosed in an envelope inside the book, inviting children to follow their feather on a journey that is bound to tickle their curiosity. (Picture book. 4-8)