Some cats are quicker on the uptake than others. Weary of waiting and waiting for every meal, Tibs at last teaches himself how to open a can of cat food. Thrilled to have one less chore, his busy human gives him a door key and a cash card, putting him in charge of buying the food as well. Though it doesn’t take Tibs long to discover the pleasures of eating out—not to mention shopping, movies, and card games—the job he is forced to take to pay the resulting bills leaves him both exhausted and barely able to afford even canned food. Better known for wordless books, Collington (Tooth Fairy, 1995, etc) adds a line or two of tongue-in-cheek commentary beneath each cleanly drawn, formally composed urban scene. Looking lumpish and uncomfortable on two legs, Tibs sees the light at last and drops again to four, sitting in graceful, blank, patient silence at door and dish until his owner grumpily resumes her role as provider. In the final picture, Tibs and the other neighborhood felines are seen sprawled out on a stoop, winking at each other. Clever, indeed. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-375-80477-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
The wriggly narrator of Diary of a Worm (2003) puts in occasional appearances, but it’s his arachnid buddy who takes center stage here, with terse, tongue-in-cheek comments on his likes (his close friend Fly, Charlotte’s Web), his dislikes (vacuums, people with big feet), nervous encounters with a huge Daddy Longlegs, his extended family—which includes a Grandpa more than willing to share hard-won wisdom (The secret to a long, happy life: “Never fall asleep in a shoe.”)—and mishaps both at spider school and on the human playground. Bliss endows his garden-dwellers with faces and the odd hat or other accessory, and creates cozy webs or burrows colorfully decorated with corks, scraps, plastic toys and other human detritus. Spider closes with the notion that we could all get along, “just like me and Fly,” if we but got to know one another. Once again, brilliantly hilarious. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-06-000153-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Joanna Cotler/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2005
Rylant (Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers, 1998, etc.) slips into a sentimental mode for this latest outing of the boy and his dog, as she sends Mudge and Henry and his parents off on a camping trip. Each character is attended to, each personality sketched in a few brief words: Henry's mother is the camping veteran with outdoor savvy; Henry's father doesn't know a tent stake from a marshmallow fork, but he's got a guitar for campfire entertainment; and the principals are their usual ready-for-fun selves. There are sappy moments, e.g., after an evening of star- gazing, Rylant sends the family off to bed with: ``Everyone slept safe and sound and there were no bears, no scares. Just the clean smell of trees . . . and wonderful green dreams.'' With its nice tempo, the story is as toasty as its campfire and swaddled in Stevenson's trusty artwork. (Fiction. 6-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-689-81175-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1998
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