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The Legend of Objee

MASCOT OF THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD ACADEMY

A wholesome, often charming example of children’s historical fiction.

In this fun historical picture book, three children enjoy a silly story of the U.S. Coast Guard’s pet bear.

Grace, Charlie and Henry ask their grandfather to read them their beloved book, The Legend of Objee. As he reads the illustrated tale, the children occasionally stop to imitate the silly behavior of the main character: a pet bear. Objee, short for objectionable presence, is rescued by Cadet Evans and brought to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy to serve as a mascot. Hijinks begin as soon as Objee is sworn in as a cadet herself; the bugles of the call to colors send her scrambling up a tree, where the academy’s superintendent hears her whining. Objee spends her days exercising with the cadets and chewing their books (here, little Charlie gnaws a book for laughs until Grandfather stops him), but the pristine cadets have trouble having a “stinky” bear in their company. One morning, Cadet Evans is found sleeping next to Objee with the buttons from his cadet jacket missing. (Grandfather explains that Objee ate the buttons, thinking they were berries.) The bear also serves as a mascot at football games; an attempt by the rival team to kidnap her goes awry when Objee begins to eat her kidnappers’ van from the inside out. Other events in Objee’s life seem a bit cruel; for example, cadets bribe her to enter the shower before the water is turned on, which makes her angry. Grandfather, however, explains that Objee embodies the “strength, character and devotion” of the Coast Guard. Simple, realistic illustrations accompany the text, showing Objee in her all of her mischief, but some show inconsistencies. For example, the story reads that Objee would consider anyone “not dressed in Coast Guard blue” as an intruder, but a Marine she startles on the next page is wearing blue. A final page features photographs of the real-life Objee, giving background to the “legend.” However, some vocabulary—words such as “suspiciously” and terms such as “brig”—may be slightly advanced for very young readers.

A wholesome, often charming example of children’s historical fiction. 

Pub Date: N/A

ISBN: 978-0988999701

Page Count: 30

Publisher: Dancing Quahog Publishing

Review Posted Online: June 14, 2013

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TALES FOR VERY PICKY EATERS

Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)

Pub Date: May 1, 2011

ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Clarion Books

Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011

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I WISH YOU MORE

Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.

A collection of parental wishes for a child.

It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.

Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)

Pub Date: April 1, 2015

ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Chronicle Books

Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015

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