A concise and covertly cautionary original folktale is complemented by precise and charming colored-pencil illustrations in this wholly delightful book. When a very old man, who lives in a tiny house at the edge of a forest with his cat, Angelina, rescues a very small man from the jaws of a fox, he is rewarded with a full belly bowl. “You need never know hunger again,” says the tiny note beneath the gift. “Use it wisely or it will be a burden.” Wise use of magical objects isn’t as easy as it sounds. The bowl recreates its contents in quantity, and at first that’s enough stew to sate man and cat; readers see it in a sequence of stills atop a spread of man and cat happily sleeping it off. The very old man neglects to turn over the bowl, however, and a spider that creeps in overnight is duplicated in spades. The man realizes that the bowl duplicates whatever is in it: his single copper penny, then an errant mouse, then cats to catch the mice, until the bowl is knocked to the floor where it shatters. The magic is gone, but the regrets are few in this thoroughly realized, easy-to-cherish tale. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-689-81033-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1999
Lunge-Larsen and Preus debut with this story of a flower that blooms for the first time to commemorate the uncommon courage of a girl who saves her people from illness. The girl, an Ojibwe of the northern woodlands, knows she must journey to the next village to get the healing herb, mash-ki- ki, for her people, who have all fallen ill. After lining her moccasins with rabbit fur, she braves a raging snowstorm and crosses a dark frozen lake to reach the village. Then, rather than wait for morning, she sets out for home while the villagers sleep. When she loses her moccasins in the deep snow, her bare feet are cut by icy shards, and bleed with every step until she reaches her home. The next spring beautiful lady slippers bloom from the place where her moccasins were lost, and from every spot her injured feet touched. Drawing on Ojibwe sources, the authors of this fluid retelling have peppered the tale with native words and have used traditional elements, e.g., giving voice to the forces of nature. The accompanying watercolors, with flowing lines, jewel tones, and decorative motifs, give stately credence to the story’s iconic aspects. (Picture book/folklore. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-395-90512-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1999
This vibrant, thoughtful book from Katz (Over the Moon, 1997) continues her tribute to her adopted daughter, Lena, born in Guatemala. Lena is “seven. I am the color of cinnamon. Mom says she could eat me up”; she learns during a painting lesson that to get the color brown, she will have to “mix red, yellow, black, and white paints.” They go for a walk to observe the many shades of brown: they see Sonia, who is the color of creamy peanut butter; Isabella, who is chocolate brown; Lucy, both peachy and tan; Jo-Jin, the color of honey; Kyle, “like leaves in fall”; Mr. Pellegrino, the color of pizza crust, golden brown. Lena realizes that every shade is beautiful, then mixes her paints accordingly for portraits of her friends—“The colors of us!” Bold illustrations celebrate diversity with a child’s open-hearted sensibility and a mother’s love. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-8050-5864-8
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1999
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