Cunningham's latest medieval allegory concerns Tegonec, who makes his living with his donkey cart, and the talking wolf who materializes by the roadside and devours his donkey, Fanfare. An incensed Tegonec ("You shall pay dearly for Fanfare. I swear you shall!") commands the wolf to pull the cart in the donkey's place, and when the wolf obeys Tegonec christens him Roland and begins to dream of being made a saint for the "miracle" of taming the wolf. This thought determines the course of his travels, for "he needed Roland in order to fulfill his destiny. The knot of pride was strong in him." The wolf runs off a couple of times to fulfill his own nature but always returns. At one point the two help a group of starving orphans escape their prison-like institution. They leave the orphans at a ruined castle with the gentle young Countess Philomele ("What lovely faces to begin a new morning"), and go on their way with the liveliest orphan, Triggot—whom Tegonec then betrays by submitting the boy's correct answer to a riddle, accepting the rich life the king gives as a prize, and forgetting the boy. But that very night he is consumed by remorse and gives up his new life to find the wolf and the boy. At 108 pages the story is relatively short, with much dialogue to keep it flowing and elemental images for guaranteed effect. But like other Cunningham stories of medieval travels, orphans, and the like, it has a frozen, sanctimonious quality.
Pub Date: March 12, 1983
ISBN: 0394958926
Page Count: 108
Publisher: Pantheon
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1983
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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