Children, to whom the questions of where and how people sleep are so important, will snuggle right up to this fascinating study of “beds.” Swain compares bedtime customs from around the world and through history, covering hammocks, berths, sleeping bags, cradles, and more; she addresses sleeping in zero gravity, and napping while hanging from a rope on a mountain climbing expedition. The historical tidbits will intrigue, too: that families of the Middle Ages slept together in the same bed (without clothes!); that ancient Egyptians depended on mosquito netting to get some shut-eye; that Chinese children had animal-shaped pillows with big eyes, to watch out for them at night. Swain’s text is conversational and fairly inclusive, while Smith’s illustrations keep the bluster out of the subject by providing plenty of humor. Children will be up all night poring over her scenes, which are packed with informative details, settings, and props. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1999
ISBN: 0-8234-1444-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1999
That Bynum comes up with so many lines to rhyme with “Altoona Baboona” deserves some kind of acclaim, even if the rhymes make readers laugh and groan at the same time. Altoona Baboona is an ape that “gets bored on her dune-a,” hops a “hot air balloon-a” and goes south to “Calcun-a.” On her hot air travels Altoona meets up with a loon-a and a racoon-a, who come back to the dune-a for an evening bonfire and roasted marshmallows. Bynum’s watercolors have a breezy ocean air feel to them, as light and buoyant as her simian heroine. (Picture book. 2-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201860-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1999
A fine counterpoint of wistful ache and be-bop sparkle informs this story about shaking the blues. A girl wakes to an urban morning, her elemental funk reflected in the lonely, sagging laundry line seen across the street from her window. “That’s such a sorrowful line./It’s droppin’ down so lowly/even pigeons pass it by.” Her bubbly sister will not let her mope and tries a little jazzy word music: “Sweet potato!/Rutabaga!/That’ll work fine!/We can play together/with the laundry line!” Her persistence pays off—it’s not long before that piece of rope has been transformed from a study in malaise to a Double-Dutch four-step workout. Davenier’s watercolors are charmingly atmospheric, perfectly suited to Millen’s spirit-raising verse; the two will work magic on any down-at-the-mouth child. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-395-87497-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1999
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