Young imaginations are tempted in this counting book that invites readers to invent stories to go along with illustrations and captions, sort of a version of Chris Van Allsburg's The Mysteries of Harris Burdick (1984), with its sinister quality counterbalanced by greeting-card pretty double-page spreads. The book opens on a scene in a cottage strongly suggestive of the story of the three bears and Goldilocks: Appearing are three bowls of porridge (one empty), three chairs (one knocked over), an open door, and a caption—``The only sounds were the crackling of the fire and a muffled thump from the window seat.'' Other settings include a kitten with a fish tank, a toy shop where ``as soon as it was dark, the mischief began again''; a marionette stage; a boy's bedroom; an attic; a teddy bears' picnic; a bunny in a cabbage patch longing to go to sea; a beach; and, finally, a Cinderella- style coach on its way to a castle as a group of fairies emerge from a grape arbor. Objects repeated in the margins lead children through a counting lesson. The soft pictures have appeal. (Picture book. 2-6)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-689-80026-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1996
Nine kids drag a cardboard box into a playground, where George immediately takes over: ``This house is mine and no one else is coming in.'' The others try to get past him, but George won't let them inside—and he explains why not: ``This house isn't for girls,'' ``This house isn't for people with glasses,'' etc. After he temporarily vacates the box to go to the bathroom, he finds that the others have declared the house off-limits to ``people with red hair.'' George, who has red hair, has an epiphany: ``This house is for everyone!'' Rosen (A School for Pompey Walker, 1995, etc.) has written a persuasive and entertaining morality play. For all its cadences, the dialogue is pungently realistic, perfectly reflecting the reasoning that goes on among children. The ethnically diverse cast appears against a stark white urban background of high-rise apartment buildings. These unassuming pictures are surprisingly powerful; Graham grays some characters and leaves others in full- color to shift the spotlight from scene to scene, then further emphasizes this theatrical effect by zooming in or pulling back from the action. Overall, it's real cartoon drama. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: July 1, 1996
ISBN: 1-56402-870-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1996
Who hasn’t shared the aggravation of a whole day’s worth of bone-rattling hiccups? Poor Skeleton wakes up with a deadly case that he can’t shake, and it’s up to his friend Ghost to think of something to scare them away. Cuyler (Stop, Drop, and Roll, 2001, etc.) cleverly brings readers through the ups and downs of Skeleton’s day, from shower to ball-playing. Home folk remedies (holding his breath, eating sugar) don’t seem to work, but Ghost applies a new perspective startling enough to unhinge listeners and Skeleton alike. While the concept is clever, it’s Schindler’s (How Santa Lost His Job, 2001, etc.) paintings, done with gouache, ink, and watercolor, that carry the day, showing Skeleton’s own unique problems—water pours out of his hollow eyes when he drinks it upside down, his teeth spin out of his head when he brushes them—that make a joke of the circumstances. Oversized spreads open the scene to read-aloud audiences, but hold intimate details for sharp eyes—monster slippers, sugar streaming through the hollow body. For all the hiccupping, this outing has a quiet feel not up to the standards of some of Cuyler’s earlier books, but the right audience will enjoy its fun. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-689-84770-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2002
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