An opulent book that sports sumptuous watercolors, a lively tempo, and clever energy. A frog jumps through Lucy's window on a summer's night, with an invitation to a party and a magic paper hat. Lucy shuffles outside, and ``a finger of moonlight touched the hat and FOOF! Lucy was as little as a leaf.'' Lucy hails a bird's- nest taxi; they stop for Madame Mouse (``Zut! I am late!), Inchworm (``I inch while I sleep,/I inch while I wake,/I inch until,/my little feet ache''), and a wee Japanese doll, lost years before and still hoping to be found. A huge owl threatens to eat them, but the taxi makes a fast escape. When the owl makes an appearance at the party, he is disarmed by the news that the birthday party is for him. ``How kind! Tonight I'll eat cake—not bugs. Do you mind?'' Before the evening's end, Inchworm becomes a moth and the doll regains its owner. Haas touches the story with rhyme here and there, infuses it with hope and old-fashioned enchantment, and loads the artwork with details that continue to reveal themselves upon additional readings. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-689-50549-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1997
BOOK REVIEW
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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