Kind Millie, a sheep, doesn't object when the other animals help themselves to her wool—Bird needs some for a nest, and so do Badger and Rabbit. When it snows and Millie is cold, they all offer to take her in, but she's too big. After Mrs. Farmer, none too pleased (``I wanted that wool...''), knits her a sweater from last year's wool, Millie's nice and warm; but then Bird spots a loose end: ``I could use a nice piece,'' she allows, and Millie says, ``Help yourself.'' The premise is absurd, but Scamell develops it with brisk, appealing dialogue, an encounter with a fox for suspense, and a wry, nicely understated humor. Hobson makes an excellent debut with wonderfully bold, simple compositions in bright, subtle colors, satirizing the silly sheep and her thoughtless friends with admirable economy. The book will amuse beginning readers, as well as younger listeners; and Hobson looks like an illustrator to watch. (Picture book. 3-7)
Pub Date: May 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-531-05486-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orchard
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1993
A soothing tale of a tree that helps transform a community.
Dani forms a bond with the sole tree that is planted in their urban neighborhood.
“In front of Dani’s building was a hole. Sometimes dusty, sometimes puddly. And sometimes wild with bits of green.” A double-page spread, mostly in muted pastels, shows a foliage-free urban setting of adjoined buildings. But soon a truck pulls up, and two people plant a tree in that hole. For brown-skinned Dani, the tree is a source of joy—when birds arrive, the child is woken by their beautiful songs instead of truck noises. The tree helps predict the weather, protects Dani from “noise and grime,” and even offers friendship as the protagonist confides in it. Quiet, lyrical text describes the ways that typical urban sights and sounds change with the arrival of the tree; this is a good introduction to the concept of greening city streets for the youngest children. The text pointedly makes this tree more “special” to Dani than the more “magnificent” trees in the park. Depicting small details of lives lived inside and outside the apartments, the vibrant illustrations invite lengthy examination. The ending double-page spreads are a delightful combination of metaphors and vivid art as each season the tree continues to make the neighborhood a joyful place to live. Tranquil and calming, this is an ideal bedtime read. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A soothing tale of a tree that helps transform a community. (information on street trees, resources) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 4, 2023
ISBN: 9780358423416
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
There are many parallel legends – the seal women, for example, with their strange sad longings – but none is more direct than this American Indian story of a girl who is carried away in a horses’ stampede…to ride thenceforth by the side of a beautiful stallion who leads the wild horses. The girl had always loved horses, and seemed to understand them “in a special way”; a year after her disappearance her people find her riding beside the stallion, calf in tow, and take her home despite his strong resistance. But she is unhappy and returns to the stallion; after that, a beautiful mare is seen riding always beside him. Goble tells the story soberly, allowing it to settle, to find its own level. The illustrations are in the familiar striking Goble style, but softened out here and there with masses of flowers and foliage – suitable perhaps for the switch in subject matter from war to love, but we miss the spanking clean design of Custer’s Last Battle and The Fetterman Fight. 6-7
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1978
ISBN: 0689845049
Page Count: -
Publisher: Bradbury
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1978
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