Swift's account of Gulliver's captivity in Lilliput and Brobdingnag is considerably shortened and rephrased here, but Riordan expertly preserves the flavor of the original: upon reaching the temple where he is to stay, the intrepid traveler shamefacedly relieves himself before the tiny multitudes (though the more famous scene where he similarly puts out a palace fire is absent); later, he survives plenty of harrowing adventures, admiringly describing the societies in which he's stranded while taking subtle pokes (and not-so-subtle—``Englishmen are the nastiest race of odious little vermin that Nature ever suffered to crawl upon the surface of the earth,'' says the king of Brobdingnag) at his own, and at fashion and politics in general. Large or small, Gulliver cuts a heroic figure in Ambrus's pervasive, free-wheeling illustrations; other characters have exaggerated features and a comic air that lighten the satire and serves the narrative well. Swift's ax-grinding can be indigestible in large doses; like other abridged classics from this publisher and illustrator, a palatable, well-blended appetizer. (Fiction. 12-14)
Pub Date: Oct. 10, 1992
ISBN: 0-19-279897-9
Page Count: 94
Publisher: Oxford Univ.
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1992
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A dog story in the best tradition of the genre: he’s enormous, under threat, and will prove himself a hero. Sirius isn’t just any dog; he’s an enormous Newfoundland who swims the breaststroke, hauls firewood across ice, locates a lost brooch on demand, and faithfully follows his master’s commands. Maggie, 12, has just heard that all non-shepherding dogs have been outlawed; if found, Sirius will be shot on sight, even though he has never killed any sheep. Hiding her beloved dog in a cave, Maggie eventually has to expose his existence to save the lives of 100 people trapped aboard a capsizing steamer. Sirius’s ability to swim is required to exchange lines from the boat to shore; using a pulley-and-chair system, every last passenger is brought to land safely. Sirius is elevated to hero status and his future is assured. Readers will be captivated by the scope of this story, which includes events of 1912, e.g., the sinking of the Titanic, as well as Newfoundlander language and customs, facts about the dogs, and details of the island, known as “the Beautiful Rock.” (map) (Fiction. 9-12)
Pub Date: March 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-689-82905-1
Page Count: 150
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1999
Pooh might describe this 1925 offering from Milne as a Very Small Tale, and so it is, but gentle and sweet withal. Princess Daffodil is the only daughter after six sons of the king and queen, and at her christening the Fairy Mumruffin grants her the gift of flowers, which will grow wherever she steps. When the princess begins toddling about the king’s favorite thinking place, strewing flowers everywhere, the king decides she must keep off the paths entirely. After a few years of this, the doctor pronounces that she must do what little girls do: “She must run about more. She must climb hills and roll down them. She must hope and skip and jump.” So the queen finds a solution in a small hill, where Daffodil can do all those things to her heart’s content, and where children play and pick the posies she makes there. Brown, who remembered the story from her own mother’s telling, who remembered it from her mother, has created delicate and winsome illustrations that are also precise: the various species of flowers are easily identifiable. Children will be charmed by the little doll-like faces of the characters and the excellent fairy colors, pastel-colored to jewel-toned as needed. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-525-46147-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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