Mr. Prospero is a staid businessman who loves the well-ordered world at his office. His suits are always pressed, his tie is always neatly knotted, his hair is always in place, and he always accomplishes his goals in the tidy, well-organized office in which he works. But when Mr. Prospero arrives home where his wife and his twins Harry and Miranda are waiting for him, things are, well, slightly less well-ordered than at work. The children excitedly demand that their dad take them to the playground to play on the beautiful long, red slide shaped like a dragon’s tongue. The children assure Daddy that he won’t get messy and dirty just watching them go down the slide and they convince him to take them. At the playground, Harry and Miranda beg their father to slide down with them. “We need a father sliding with us. And a dog!” Miranda says happily, knowing her father won’t say no to his children. Despite his misgivings and the threat of dirt on his clothes, Mr. Prospero agrees to slide down once. And then slides down once more, and again and again and again. In fact, when Harry and Miranda are tired and want to go home, Mr. Prospero is still climbing the steps to the top of the slide, sliding down, and then starting the process all over. By now, Mr. Prospero has lost his shoes, his shirt has come untucked, his tie is awry, and his hair is mussed. But he’s supremely happy. Children will delight in seeing a buttoned-down daddy loosen up and give in to the pleasure of doing something just because it’s fun. Although this world seems straight out of the 1950s in its homogeneity (all the characters are white and most of the girls and women wear dresses and are well-groomed), the lack of any sort of diversity will be more problematical for adults than for the children who will wholeheartedly love the concept. Warm illustrations rendered in acrylics and painted in a deliberately childlike style ably convey the children’s enthusiasm and their father’s initial ambivalence before he gives in to the exhilaration of sliding down the slide. There is too much empty white background in the design of the book, but this is a minor criticism. An enormously fun and joyous book that works equally well as a group read-aloud or one-on-one. (Picture book. 3-7)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-531-30272-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orchard
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2000
A warm hug of a picture book wishing all children happy, fulfilled, and meaningful lives.
A picture book filled with positive messages for young children.
From the first “I wish you” page of this picture book to the last, the author of Bedtime for Picco Puppy and other books in the Picco Puppy picture book series (2019) offers children words of encouragement and inspiration, complemented by a gifted artist’s charming illustrations. “I wish you dreams and aspirations, to spread your wings and reach for the stars,” the book begins. On the page, against a deep blue starry sky, a little brown-haired girl steadies a ladder for a blond boy in a space helmet who is reaching for the moon. Children of different races frolic in a snowy wood to illustrate “I wish you joy and laughter, to laugh long and loud until you gasp for breath.” A little Black girl in a wheelchair and a light-skinned boy share an ice cream cone on a leafy autumn day to illustrate “I wish you kindness and generosity, for no act of kindness is ever wasted, no matter how small.” Each “wish” is stated with graceful simplicity; each colorful illustration matches that tone and delights the eye. Two end-of-book features invite children to go back through the pages: “Can You Spot the Famous People?” highlights pictures of some of the book’s characters as if they are child versions of such well-known figures as Amelia Earhart, Neil Armstrong, and NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson, accompanying each name with a short bio. “Can You Spot the Dog?” identifies each dog in the book with its breed.
A warm hug of a picture book wishing all children happy, fulfilled, and meaningful lives.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-925973-12-9
Page Count: 38
Publisher: Picco Puppy
Review Posted Online: Nov. 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
For Berkner’s fans; there are much better books about children visiting imaginative lands.
Berkner’s children’s song gets the picture-book treatment with illustrations from Garoche.
What kid hasn’t made a massive pillow fort and imagined all sorts of adventures? Well, Berkner’s premise is that there is a land where everything is made of pillows, and three lucky children get to visit there. (They appear to be siblings, perhaps a blended family: Mom and one girl are black; Dad, one boy, and one girl are white.) The illustrations transition between depictions of obvious imaginative play in a bedroom to a fantasy world and back again at the end, when the parents peek in at the three asleep. Garoche’s art consists of photos of papercut artwork arranged in dioramas with some Photoshop details. Reminiscent of Michael Garland’s work (though more pastel in color) or that of Elly McKay (though less ethereal), the illustrations are a mixed bag, with layers and hard edges juxtaposed against all the pillows. The king and queen of the song are obviously stand-ins for the parents. Children who know the tune may not sit still for a reading, while those who don’t may wonder at the repeated refrain.
For Berkner’s fans; there are much better books about children visiting imaginative lands. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-6467-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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