Eccentric aunts Jane, Lizzie, and Alice star in Stewig’s (Mother Holly, 2001, etc.) memoir-ish account of a boy’s summer sojourn to the country. “Now, Jackie, just think before you do anything,” his mother says as they drive through the cornfields. “You know the aunts sometimes do things differently than we do.” The next day, Jack sets about his usual tasks of fetching eggs from the hen house and watering the plants. But when the aunts decide to make plum jam, Jackie sees the truth of his mother’s words. O’Malley’s (Dinosaur Deals, 2001, etc.) full-bleed spread, which appears to be rendered in colored pencil, shows the foursome packed into the car on their way to Farmer Wilson’s land. On the next spread, they gleefully pick plums off the farmer’s tree while the angry farmer angrily approaches. A vignette of the foot-stomping farmer varies the pacing on the next spread; on the opposite page, the getaway car, shown from the rear, leaves a trail of dust and purple fruit. Stewig draws the story to a close with an act of redemption. Unable to sleep that night, Jackie sneaks out of bed and leaves a basket of jam in Farmer Wilson’s mailbox with a note that says “Thank You.” It makes for better neighborly relations—a few days later Farmer Wilson returns the gesture. “Thought you might like to eat some fresh,” reads the note tucked inside a basket of fruit. Young readers will likely recall stories of their own after hearing this expressive tale. A good choice to inspire storytelling sessions and children’s own writing. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-7868-0460-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2002
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Give this child’s-eye view of a day at the beach with an attentive father high marks for coziness: “When your ball blows across the sand and into the ocean and starts to drift away, your daddy could say, Didn’t I tell you not to play too close to the waves? But he doesn’t. He wades out into the cold water. And he brings your ball back to the beach and plays roll and catch with you.” Alley depicts a moppet and her relaxed-looking dad (to all appearances a single parent) in informally drawn beach and domestic settings: playing together, snuggling up on the sofa and finally hugging each other goodnight. The third-person voice is a bit distancing, but it makes the togetherness less treacly, and Dad’s mix of love and competence is less insulting, to parents and children both, than Douglas Wood’s What Dads Can’t Do (2000), illus by Doug Cushman. (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: May 23, 2005
ISBN: 0-618-00361-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2005
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