by Joy Cowley & illustrated by Gavin Bishop ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2008
A sensitive snake and her lovable lizard companion enjoy a warm and touching relationship, shattering the stereotypes that commonly plague their cold-blooded species. The two become fast friends, first as housemates and later as business partners counseling fellow desert-dwellers on life and love. Cowley carves developed characters through concise dialogue, as Snake often balances her primal reptilian instincts against her shy disposition, creating witty moments within each chapter. Snake did, after all, eat one of Lizard’s 97 siblings in her past: “Lizard was right,” she reflects. “The little guy had been real sweet.” She shudders, however, at the thought of addressing a baby rattler. “You know all about snakes. It’s your cousin!” protests Lizard. “Some cousins I don’t speak to,” Snake exclaims. Bishop’s rich watercolor-and-pen illustrations complement the story, often portraying Lizard upright next to slithering Snake. His contained lines and splashes of color breathe air into the setting’s dry surroundings. The New Zealand author-and-illustrator team solidly develops this pair’s formidable friendship under the scorching desert sun. (Fiction. 7-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-933605-83-8
Page Count: 104
Publisher: Kane Miller
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2008
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by Suzy Kline ; illustrated by Amy Wummer ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 27, 2018
A fitting farewell, still funny, acute, and positive in its view of human nature even in its 37th episode.
A long-running series reaches its closing chapters.
Having, as Kline notes in her warm valedictory acknowledgements, taken 30 years to get through second and third grade, Harry Spooger is overdue to move on—but not just into fourth grade, it turns out, as his family is moving to another town as soon as the school year ends. The news leaves his best friend, narrator “Dougo,” devastated…particularly as Harry doesn’t seem all that fussed about it. With series fans in mind, the author takes Harry through a sort of last-day-of-school farewell tour. From his desk he pulls a burned hot dog and other items that featured in past episodes, says goodbye to Song Lee and other classmates, and even (for the first time ever) leads Doug and readers into his house and memento-strewn room for further reminiscing. Of course, Harry isn’t as blasé about the move as he pretends, and eyes aren’t exactly dry when he departs. But hardly is he out of sight before Doug is meeting Mohammad, a new neighbor from Syria who (along with further diversifying a cast that began as mostly white but has become increasingly multiethnic over the years) will also be starting fourth grade at summer’s end, and planning a written account of his “horrible” buddy’s exploits. Finished illustrations not seen.
A fitting farewell, still funny, acute, and positive in its view of human nature even in its 37th episode. (Fiction. 7-9)Pub Date: Nov. 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-451-47963-1
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Sept. 16, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2018
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by Sara Pennypacker & illustrated by Marla Frazee ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2006
Maybe it was because third-grader Clementine was a little bit angry with her best friend Margaret that things got out of hand with the scissors and the permanent markers and the hair. Or maybe she really was just trying to help. In short chapters, set in the city apartment building her father manages or the school where she has some tough days, Clementine relates the events of the trying week she discovered she was the difficult child in her family and thought she was about to be given away. Middle-grade readers will sympathize with Clementine’s conflicted feelings about her friend and her family, and laugh out loud at her impulsive antics, narrated in a fresh first-person voice and illustrated with plenty of humor. Just like her family they will cheer when she comes up with a way to end The Great Pigeon War as well as the temporary rift with her friend. Energetic and imaginative, Clementine is gifted with understanding and patient parents. Give this to readers of Cleary and Blume and cross your fingers for more. (Fiction. 7-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-7868-3882-5
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2006
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