Fascinatingly anachronistic and a tad long-winded, this book is an eccentric curiosity that will have both kids and adults...
Originally published by Polish poet and avant-garde filmmaker Themerson in 1938 and illustrated with charming line drawings by his wife Franciszka, this miniature hardback book in six chapters tells the story of Mr. Rouse’s unusual house-building challenges.
The little man has to explain with difficulty to the architect that not any old house will do: “I’m not a bird, you know; how could I live in a house made of leaves?” Neither a pagoda nor a skyscraper meets his needs, nor a block of flats, where “The houses are choking!” Finally Mr. Builder gets it. He rings up Mr. Rouse on the telephone to tell him the plans are done, and he will start building right away. After a challenging journey across country via bus, horse-drawn cab, train and plane, Mr. Rouse finally is able to inspect his new abode. He loves the house, but basic services are missing, and he has to work hard to get running water and electricity hooked up and a clock installed. In a style reminiscent of poems by Edward Lear and Lewis Carroll, typography is used humorously to illustrate Rouse’s eccentric antics.
Fascinatingly anachronistic and a tad long-winded, this book is an eccentric curiosity that will have both kids and adults puzzling over its arcane Briticisms and enjoying its Python-esque wackiness. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-84976-154-3
Page Count: 148
Publisher: Tate/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2014
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
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