Tales of Baron Munchausen have mostly belonged to previous generations, with a few books popping up now and then. This stylish production may find new readers for the legendary tales of this man who was part magician, part entertainer and part scoundrel. A foreword provides the background of the real Munchausen, who was born a German baron in the 18th century, joined the Russian military and returned home to tell these outrageous tall tales about his adventures. Told in the first person, the 11 amusingly preposterous anecdotes include riding a cannonball, traveling to the moon, being given a sack full of sunshine, holding a concert inside a whale and riding a seahorse. Translated from the German, the tales smoothly segue into each other as Blau’s sophisticated, elegant artwork visualizes the settings, antics and Baron, who has a hooked nose, gray mustache and curls and wears a tricorn hat and boots. This is handsomely designed in picture-book format, but the font size and amount of text on each page make it a lengthy read-aloud choice for kids whose imaginations trip the light fantastic. (Fiction. 7-10)
Pub Date: May 30, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-59270-091-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 22, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A delectable companion to The Corgiville Fair (1971), in which Tudor employs conversational prose to revisit the pastoral setting and farmyard inhabitants of the original. Caleb Corgi turns determined detective with the kidnapping of Babe, "the biggest rooster on earth who made a yearly sensation at the Corgiville Fair." The scoundrels in this case are rumored to be Hiram Racky and his band of evil raccoon radicals, soon to be outwitted by the well-educated Caleb himself. Complete with an old-fashioned hot-air balloon escape and the aid of Charley Crow, the story finds Babe eating amaretto biscuits on his way back to Corgiville, where a full-fledged celebration awaits. Within this rousing good guys/bad guys tale are cheeky animal characters outfitted in vests and topcoats, sophisticated humor, nods to Julia Child, Gertrude Stein, and others who will not be known to children, but Tudor's devotees will love this caper, and others will want to go unearth the first work. (Picture book. 7-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-316-85583-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1997
The author of Making Animal Babies (p. 556) and other nature titles takes the reader to the rain forest of Costa Rica and describes the plants and animals living there. The text, printed over a solid color panel, is limited to a single column on the edge of each painting. Though long for reading aloud, the descriptions are lively and detailed. For example, “Unlike most other birds, bellbirds and quetzals have big mouths, which allow them to swallow wild avocados whole.” Or, “Squeezing a moss-covered branch is like squeezing a soaked sponge; icy water trickles down your arm.” The dark, lush, richly detailed paintings, which comprise most of each layout, capture the mood of the rain forest, though sometimes it is hard to locate the dozens of plants and animals in each panel, some with labels, but often without. The author occasionally provides scientific names and at other times uses common names. Readers may struggle to find Norantea costaricensis or the Tayra in other sources. Creatures are not drawn to scale so a golden toad in the foreground appears larger than a person in the background. Important details are lost in the gutter, when the painting spans the double page. The author concludes with places to write for more information, a list of Web sites, further reading, a map of the region, and a brief glossary. While the author does not provide enough information on the rain forest for school reports, he captures the flavor of this rich and alien environment. (Nonfiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: July 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-88106-985-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2000
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
