by Rosemary Sutcliff & illustrated by Ralph Thompson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 1993
At the behest of the illustrator of Gerald Durrell's books on animals, Sutcliff created this curious fable involving a real set of 12th-century Scandinavian chessmen (found on the Scottish Isle of Lewis) in a tale in which the Arthurian legend is summoned to serve an environmental message. In a beautiful garden (Eden/Camelot/Through the Looking-Glass?), the White King and Queen and their retinue each have an animal companion by day and another of which they dream—the Queen dreams of a unicorn, and sometimes that she is the unicorn, while her knight dreams of a zebra-striped horse, and of the Queen's unicorn, too. Even the pawns (carved simply as tombstones!) dream of being armadillos. The Knight woos the Queen, who refuses him; still, trouble has entered Paradise, now stormed by the Red Horde, and there's an allusion-filled battle on the chessboard, the beasts taking part. It's an intriguing intellectual exercise, but there are simply too many ideas here to find synthesis in such a brief story. Still, Sutcliff's admirers will be fascinated by the recapitulation of her themes; her prose is, as always, elegantly phrased; Thompson's lovely garden and expressive figures are limned with skillful, energetic strokes; and the story, though overintricate and confusing, is packed with action. A handsome book with so much going on that, paradoxically, it has something for everyone. (Picture book. 5+)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1993
ISBN: 1-56402-192-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1993
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by Pete Seeger & Paul Dubois Jacobs & illustrated by Michael Hays ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2001
The seemingly ageless Seeger brings back his renowned giant for another go in a tuneful tale that, like the art, is a bit sketchy, but chockful of worthy messages. Faced with yearly floods and droughts since they’ve cut down all their trees, the townsfolk decide to build a dam—but the project is stymied by a boulder that is too huge to move. Call on Abiyoyo, suggests the granddaughter of the man with the magic wand, then just “Zoop Zoop” him away again. But the rock that Abiyoyo obligingly flings aside smashes the wand. How to avoid Abiyoyo’s destruction now? Sing the monster to sleep, then make it a peaceful, tree-planting member of the community, of course. Seeger sums it up in a postscript: “every community must learn to manage its giants.” Hays, who illustrated the original (1986), creates colorful, if unfinished-looking, scenes featuring a notably multicultural human cast and a towering Cubist fantasy of a giant. The song, based on a Xhosa lullaby, still has that hard-to-resist sing-along potential, and the themes of waging peace, collective action, and the benefits of sound ecological practices are presented in ways that children will both appreciate and enjoy. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-83271-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2001
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by Julia Alvarez ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2001
Simple, bella, un regalo permenente: simple and beautiful, a gift that will stay.
Renowned Latin American writer Alvarez has created another story about cultural identity, but this time the primary character is 11-year-old Miguel Guzmán.
When Tía Lola arrives to help the family, Miguel and his hermana, Juanita, have just moved from New York City to Vermont with their recently divorced mother. The last thing Miguel wants, as he's trying to fit into a predominantly white community, is a flamboyant aunt who doesn't speak a word of English. Tía Lola, however, knows a language that defies words; she quickly charms and befriends all the neighbors. She can also cook exotic food, dance (anywhere, anytime), plan fun parties, and tell enchanting stories. Eventually, Tía Lola and the children swap English and Spanish ejercicios, but the true lesson is "mutual understanding." Peppered with Spanish words and phrases, Alvarez makes the reader as much a part of the "language" lessons as the characters. This story seamlessly weaves two culturaswhile letting each remain intact, just as Miguel is learning to do with his own life. Like all good stories, this one incorporates a lesson just subtle enough that readers will forget they're being taught, but in the end will understand themselves, and others, a little better, regardless of la lengua nativa—the mother tongue.
Simple, bella, un regalo permenente: simple and beautiful, a gift that will stay. (Fiction. 9-11)Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-375-80215-0
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2001
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