Freshly illustrated with retro art from Yaccarino, this 1950 tale still stands up despite its references to a once-popular song that modern children probably won’t recognize. Little Ollie diligently practices his tuba, but all he can play is “Asleep in the Deep.” Though dogs and other animals gather round to listen attentively, his Mom and the neighbors soon rise up in protest and drive him from home, from the yard and even from a farmer’s field. Fetching up at last on the seashore, he rows out into a fog—to discover that an important bell buoy has disappeared, and only he and his instrument can guide an incoming passenger liner safely into harbor. The grateful town sends him to a (distant) music school. Since Ollie’s short pants and other details in the pictures’ urban and rural settings could pass for contemporary with the text, the blend of old and new is seamless. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-375-83903-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Golden Books/Random
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2007
PLB 0-688-17054-4 Henkes offers a bare-bones arrangement of words to convey snowfall, the creatures that enjoy it, and the passing of the day. “The snow falls and falls all night. In the morning everything is white. And everyone wants to play. Oh!” Animals and children are introduced with the tinkered refrain: “The cat wants to play. Sneak, sneak, sneak, brave young cat. The dog wants to play. Run, run, run, clever old dog.” The reasons for the words “brave” and “clever” are never shown in any tangible way. The snowscape is depicted in a dreamy and lovely wash of color by Dronzek, who gives the animals faces, but uses hats and hoods to hide the features of the children. After everyone joins in a peaceable kingdom of building, the shadows lengthen, the snow turns an evening blue, and playtime is over. For all their simplicity, the words and acts have an opacity that encumbers flow and meaning; the haiku-like spareness is employed without effect. (Picture book. 2-6)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-688-17053-6
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1999
In this sweetly sentimental story set in the frozen twilight of an Arctic spring, George (Morning, Noon, and Night, p. 699, etc.) tells of an Inuit girl who goes out to hunt. Bessie Nivyek sets out with her big brother, Vincent, to hunt for food; in a twist out of McCloskey’s Blueberries for Sal, Bessie bumps into a young bear, and they frolic: climbing, sliding, somersaulting, and cuddling. Vincent spies the tracks of his little sister and follows, wary of the mother bear; the mother bear is just as wary of Vincent. Out of the water rears danger to both the child and cub—a huge male polar bear. The mother bear warns her cub; it runs away, as does Bessie. Brother and sister head back home, “to eat, go to school, and learn the wisdom of the Arctic like Eskimo children do.” The brief text is lyrical and the illustrations are striking, with an impressively varied palette of white, in blue, green, yellow, and gold. Children who note that Vincent goes home empty-handed will wonder why he didn’t hunt any of the polar bears that were within range. While children will enjoy this romantic view of Bessie and the bear, those seeking a more realistic representation of life in this harsh environment will be unsatisfied. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-7868-0456-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1999
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