An honest presentation of a contemporary problem, by an author who has explored moral issues with unusual insight in books for older children (A Good Courage, 1988). Sophie's energies are devoted to earning enough money to buy an endearing toy hedgehog. She's an only child with an allergic mother, precluding a pet; she's also sure that ``Weldon'' will supplant snooty Veronica's doll at a school Toyland celebration. Meanwhile, a homeless man and his sign—``I'm hungry''—prey on her conscience; as she tries to earn the $40 for Weldon, she worries about the man and finally gives him half her money. A disarmingly simple narrative, with telling details slipped in naturally: Sophie offers to help her mother, who is so grateful that Sophie decides not to ask for pay; skipping school lunch to save money, she finds that her hunger feeds her sympathy for the man. A realistic, inconclusive discussion between Sophie and her mother gently summarizes the tangled issues surrounding handouts to the homeless. In the end, the man remains an unknown who simply disappears; Sophie has acted from motives and understanding that have grown over the course of the story; and she does get the hedgehog—too late for the school competition, but that's no longer important. A thoughtful, intelligent, and appealing book, with respect for its young readers and for the problem it explores. Illustrations not seen. (Fiction. 7-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-02-789365-0
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Four Winds/MacMillan
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1992
Trickling, bubbling, swirling, rushing, a river flows down from its mountain beginnings, past peaceful country and bustling city on its way to the sea. Hooper (The Drop in My Drink, 1998, etc.) artfully evokes the water’s changing character as it transforms from “milky-cold / rattling-bold” to a wide, slow “sliding past mudflats / looping through marshes” to the end of its journey. Willey, best known for illustrating Geraldine McCaughrean’s spectacular folk-tale collections, contributes finely detailed scenes crafted in shimmering, intricate blues and greens, capturing mountain’s chill, the bucolic serenity of passing pastures, and a sense of mystery in the water’s shadowy depths. Though Hooper refers to “the cans and cartons / and bits of old wood” being swept along, there’s no direct conservation agenda here (for that, see Debby Atwell’s River, 1999), just appreciation for the river’s beauty and being. (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-7636-0792-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000
An uncomplicated opener, with some funny bits and a clear but not heavy agenda.
Hank Zipzer, poster boy for dyslexic middle graders everywhere, stars in a new prequel series highlighting second-grade trials and triumphs.
Hank’s hopes of playing Aqua Fly, a comic-book character, in the upcoming class play founder when, despite plenty of coaching and preparation, he freezes up during tryouts. He is not particularly comforted when his sympathetic teacher adds a nonspeaking role as a bookmark to the play just for him. Following the pattern laid down in his previous appearances as an older child, he gets plenty of help and support from understanding friends (including Ashley Wong, a new apartment-house neighbor). He even manages to turn lemons into lemonade with a quick bit of improv when Nick “the Tick” McKelty, the sneering classmate who took his preferred role, blanks on his lines during the performance. As the aforementioned bully not only chokes in the clutch and gets a demeaning nickname, but is fat, boastful and eats like a pig, the authors’ sensitivity is rather one-sided. Still, Hank has a winning way of bouncing back from adversity, and like the frequent black-and-white line-and-wash drawings, the typeface is designed with easy legibility in mind.
An uncomplicated opener, with some funny bits and a clear but not heavy agenda. (Fiction. 7-9)Pub Date: Feb. 14, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-448-48239-2
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Dec. 10, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
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