When a boy reads a book about birds, his imagination takes flight. Multicolored acrylic paintings on bright, spare backgrounds narrow the focus straight to the boy and his dreams of taking wing with some colorful feathered friends. When asked, the boy’s father explains that the boy can’t fly because he doesn’t have wings—he has arms and hands instead. More “why” questions follow, resulting in the boy being hugged, swung and tossed, until he soars through the air with the help of his father. The minimal, dialogue-only text works well, allowing readers to immerse themselves in the illustrations and perhaps add some description of their own. Sitting together in an armchair, the boy and his father then embark on a new reading selection about fish. Questions about fins seem sure to follow! An engaging and effective father-son story in which the main characters are black and race is not presented as an issue, this is a charming introduction to the worlds of books, birds and imagination, and an apt choice for parent-child reading. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: March 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-56145-430-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2009
Spending a week at Granny’s is not Annabelle’s idea of fun for two reasons: she has to be in charge of making her little brother, Willie, behave and she has to help Granny put up mountains of tomatoes. Annabelle can’t stand doing either thing because she hates tomatoes—and Willie and trouble go together like biscuits and gravy. When he drives the hay bale cart pulled by Chester the goat into the pond, or lassoes chickens, or climbs the windmill, Granny doesn’t see his mischief-making and blames Annabelle. When Granny sends Willie to the cellar with eggs, he doesn’t close the cellar doors and a polecat gets in and they all get skunked. Granny makes “stink soup” as the only remedy to rid them of the smell, and the tomato bath saves the day for everybody. The realistic illustrations salt-and-pepper the saucy tale with wry humor, comeuppance, and down-home flavor. Amusing. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: March 8, 2004
ISBN: 0-374-37252-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2004
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Lyrical text and cartoonish illustrations give life to an otherwise prosaic moving-is-not-so-bad tale. A little boy has “Trouble” on moving day because he likes where he is. “And my best friend lives around the block. / Why move to a place called Little Rock / Anyway?” he choruses. Humorous images provide counterpoint to the boy’s sadness: baby sister pouring milk on her head; the boy guarding his room with a toy light saber while wearing flippers and cowboy hat; goateed moving men struggling with a box full of rocks, including shiny rocks, skipping rocks, and big rocks. Of course, the new house isn’t so bad, after all. In Little Rock, the boy gets his own kitten and a new (for some reason nearly identical) best friend. Some nice details, such as the car’s different license plate at the new house, will help explain moving to a child. Those who buy this to calm recalcitrant young movers should take the time to read the rollicking, rhythmic, fun verse aloud. (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: March 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-399-23479-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2004
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