Bell-Rehwoldt’s spunky spitfire of a redheaded tooth fairy defies historical conceptions. She is strong, smart and agile. She dismisses Cinderella as lazy. She is a modern fairy for the techno age and, she points out, “an action kind of gal. I live for danger!” Instead of flying, she zips around on a turbo surfboard. She invented the amazing Tooth-o-Finder that alerts her to lost teeth all over the world and uses her Spy-o-Binoculars to scope her entry into the house. She spends much of this book describing her many talents and abilities, such as gracefully avoiding household pets, but she also tutors the reader on tooth etiquette. There’s a section on dos and don’ts regarding tooth-placement, advising, among other points, never to wrap it in a smelly sock. Having been stripped of her dainty, gentle, winged ways, this may not be the tooth fairy for every child. However, others will surely vigorously embrace her gusto. Slonim’s energetic paintings are humorous and showcase the tooth fairy’s vim and vigor in saturated colors and clever perspectives. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-8118-5460-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2007
Unhei has just left her Korean homeland and come to America with her parents. As she rides the school bus toward her first day of school, she remembers the farewell at the airport in Korea and examines the treasured gift her grandmother gave her: a small red pouch containing a wooden block on which Unhei’s name is carved. Unhei is ashamed when the children on the bus find her name difficult to pronounce and ridicule it. Lesson learned, she declines to tell her name to anyone else and instead offers, “Um, I haven’t picked one yet. But I’ll let you know next week.” Her classmates write suggested names on slips of paper and place them in a jar. One student, Joey, takes a particular liking to Unhei and sees the beauty in her special stamp. When the day arrives for Unhei to announce her chosen name, she discovers how much Joey has helped. Choi (Earthquake, see below, etc.) draws from her own experience, interweaving several issues into this touching account and delicately addressing the challenges of assimilation. The paintings are done in creamy, earth-tone oils and augment the story nicely. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: July 10, 2001
ISBN: 0-375-80613-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2001
SEEN & HEARD
Sitting on his stoop near the end of a tidy block of row houses, Max seizes on a couple of sticks that blow from a tree and begins tapping: on his own thighs; on the bottom of Grandpa's window-washing bucket; on a hatbox his mother brings home, bottles, a garbage can. Unobtrusively, Pinkney slips in new information about Max's family in each spread, as the boy experiments creatively with what's at hand, imitates rhythms he hears (``the sound of pigeons, startled into flight,'' church bells, the wheels of the train where his father's a conductor). In a satisfying conclusion, the drummer in a passing band tosses Max his extra drumsticks. Pinkney's scratchboard illustrations, designed with a sure hand and overlaid with rich, subtle shades of sky blue, leaf green, and brick applied in free, painterly strokes, are superb; they vividly convey the imagination and vitality of this budding young musician. A perfect marriage of idea and art. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-671-78776-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1994
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