A long but sometimes-delightful illustrated work for young readers.
In debut author/illustrator Cassis’ children’s book, a 600-year-old family heirloom sparks a grandfather’s story about a squire’s values.
Seven-year-old Mac asks Grandpa about the gold ring he wears, and he explains to her that it’s been handed down through their family for centuries—ever since their ancestors served as squires. Back then, they began training at the age of 7, and if they proved themselves worthy at 14, they received a gold ring. Cassis illustrates Grandpa’s explanations of ancient chivalric traditions with colorful diagrams of a knight’s outfit, explanations of a squire’s stable responsibilities, and information about the family’s ancestor Mackenzie Stewart, a Scottish knight in the service of the legendary Sir Galahad. Grandpa uses tales from the past and the ideals of chivalry to provide Mac with guidance and direction, and the book focuses on the necessity of believing in oneself, treating others with respect, and being helpful and fair. Grandpa also tells Mac that squires aspired to be good friends to others, and to avoid bullying behavior. Overall, this effort is clearly a labor of love, and its heart is in the right place. That said, the text sometimes feels wordy and somewhat didactic. However, kids will likely enjoy a tale that Grandpa spins in the book’s latter half, which features several illustrations of an enormous, marvelously scary green dragon named Spitfire who lives in a dark, smelly cave. The queen sends Sir Galahad to rid the villagers of the dangerous creature, and brave Squire Mackenzie must step up when the dragon breaks Sir Galahad’s arm; however, Squire Mackenzie realizes that the creature is only irritable because it’s suffering from a bad cold. The story ends with a well-handled revelation that Mackenzie Stewart, for whom Mac is named, is female.
A long but sometimes-delightful illustrated work for young readers.Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5255-3242-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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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The greening of Dr. Seuss, in an ecology fable with an obvious message but a savingly silly style. In the desolate land of the Lifted Lorax, an aged creature called the Once-ler tells a young visitor how he arrived long ago in the then glorious country and began manufacturing anomalous objects called Thneeds from "the bright-colored tufts of the Truffula Trees." Despite protests from the Lorax, a native "who speaks for the trees," he continues to chop down Truffulas until he drives away the Brown Bar-ba-loots who had fed on the Tuffula fruit, the Swomee-Swans who can't sing a note for the smogulous smoke, and the Humming-Fish who had hummed in the pond now glumped up with Gluppity-Glupp. As for the Once-let, "1 went right on biggering, selling more Thneeds./ And I biggered my money, which everyone needs" — until the last Truffula falls. But one seed is left, and the Once-let hands it to his listener, with a message from the Lorax: "UNLESS someone like you/ cares a whole awful lot,/ nothing is going to get better./ It's not." The spontaneous madness of the old Dr. Seuss is absent here, but so is the boredom he often induced (in parents, anyway) with one ridiculous invention after another. And if the Once-let doesn't match the Grinch for sheer irresistible cussedness, he is stealing a lot more than Christmas and his story just might induce a generation of six-year-olds to care a whole lot.
Pub Date: Aug. 12, 1971
ISBN: 0394823370
Page Count: 72
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Oct. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1971
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