Bearing a pole and a pack, Miss Heiferton arrives in time to draw then tenth and last turn for the moon-jumping contest. With Angus Le Boeuf presiding, nine other cows make the attempt: Lady Bovine uses a trampoline; Creamella tries homemade wings, and so on, the diminishing row of contestants looking on. None of the amusingly elaborate contrivances works as planned: Dairy Lee's rubber-band helicowpter unwinds too soon; Mary La Moo's mootorcycle stalls. Then Miss Heiferton vaults triumphantly aloft with her simple pole, while her pack turns out to be a parachute to waft her down: ``I want to thank my pole for its support and the moon for being there.'' Brown brings a promising amount of imagination and ingenuity to her first book. In some ways it's over-contrived (the puns are fun, but the verse limps, and kids learning to count to ten aren't going to get some of the sophisticated wordplay) and under-meticulous (if the cows have names like ``Aberdeen,'' ``Angus,'' and ``Jersey,'' they shouldn't all look like Guernseys)—but the idea is unusual, and the brightly colored, nicely designed illustrations have a merry verve. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-670-84237-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1992
A book that will make young dog-owners smile in recognition and confirm dogless readers' worst suspicions about the mayhem caused by pets, even winsome ones. Sam, who bears passing resemblance to an affable golden retriever, is praised for fetching the family newspaper, and goes on to fetch every other newspaper on the block. In the next story, only the children love Sam's swimming; he is yelled at by lifeguards and fishermen alike when he splashes through every watering hole he can find. Finally, there is woe to the entire family when Sam is bored and lonely for one long night. Boland has an essential message, captured in both both story and illustrations of this Easy-to-Read: Kids and dogs belong together, especially when it's a fun-loving canine like Sam. An appealing tale. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8037-1530-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1996
Sloat collaborates with Huffman, a Yu’pik storyteller, to infuse a traditional “origins” tale with the joy of creating. Hearing the old women of her village grumble that they have only tasteless crowberries for the fall feast’s akutaq—described as “Eskimo ice cream,” though the recipe at the end includes mixing in shredded fish and lard—young Anana carefully fashions three dolls, then sings and dances them to life. Away they bound, to cover the hills with cranberries, blueberries, and salmonberries. Sloat dresses her smiling figures in mixes of furs and brightly patterned garb, and sends them tumbling exuberantly through grassy tundra scenes as wildlife large and small gathers to look on. Despite obtrusively inserted pronunciations for Yu’pik words in the text, young readers will be captivated by the action, and by Anana’s infectious delight. (Picture book/folktale. 6-8)
Pub Date: June 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-88240-575-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
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