Minor details and most of Andersen’s literary flourishes have been cut out of this shortened version, but the essential plot is intact. Grown from a magic seed, Thumbelina is repeatedly kidnapped for her beauty, escapes two forced-marriage attempts with the help of animal friends, and finally consents to wed the king of the flower people, because “he was the right husband for her.” Pinkney places his tall (about three inches—or triple her size in the original), graceful, cinnamon-skinned figure within close-up natural landscapes, vibrantly depicted in warm browns and golds with short, thick, curving brushstrokes. Though Thumbelina is not the most active or independent-minded of role models, she does have plenty of adventures, and the sense of self-possession that she radiates in every scene is never shaken by events. And even though her eye makeup looks like it was laid on with a trowel, the preciousness that tends to infect other renditions of the tale is less evident in this readable adaptation. (Picture book/fairy tale. 8-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-688-17476-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2003
What did dinosaurs eat? Most dinosaur fanciers know that some ate plants, others animals. This ``First Book'' provides photos of dinosaur and plant fossils as well as artists' renditions of various dinosaurs dining. The brief text is frequently sidetracked by irrelevant trivia: ``The plates on stegosaurus's back really gave it one of the first solar-powered heating systems!'' Or, ``Brachiosaurus didn't have a strong tail to help it stand, but if you weigh 70 tons...that might not help anyway.'' With so many outstanding books available on the subject, this seems unnecessary. Further reading; glossary; index.~(Nonfiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: March 1, 1991
ISBN: 0-531-20011-6
Page Count: 64
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1991
A second episode in the ``Pet Lovers Club'' series pits third-grader Erin and her bunny Peter against the other club members, who want to raise money for the new animal shelter by electing a pet to lead the Easter Parade. Horrified at the thought of losing—not to mention the absurdity of an Easter Gerbil, an Easter Cat, or even an Easter Cockroach—Erin stages a rabbitnapping to give her pet some publicity. Impelled by wholesome guilt, she eventually confesses to the parade crowd and, in a fine display of protective solidarity, the rest of the club steps forward to share the blame. Fluffy but readable, with advice for rabbit owners and a record-keeping chart. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-385-30549-4
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1992
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