This is the story the librarian reads to the kids to keep them grinning when they say “read it again!” (Picture book. 4-8)
All kinds of calamities befall the titular book in this cumulative riff on “The House That Jack Built.”
Following the initial pages that introduce both Jake and the book, conditions for the book quickly deteriorate: Jelly drips on it, a rat licks the jelly, a cat catches the rat, a dog chases the cat, and the dog chews the book’s pages. The mangled book is taken back to the library (along with the contents of Jake’s piggy bank), and the collage illustration shows a stereotypical, frowning librarian who scolds Jake—but wait! She’s also the librarian who lets him take home extra books even after she laments the first book’s harsh treatment. The childlike fabric collages are busy, with double-page spreads that frequently feature large, labeled arrows cut from lined paper on verso pointing to the various characters. Interjections between lines add extra opportunity for storytime audiences to chime in (and giggle): “This is the rat / that licked the jelly Oh, gross! / That dripped on the book Oh, no! / that Jake borrowed.” In the picture, a plump rat snoozes on top of the opened book. Jake and the librarian are both white; the former has impish dots and lines for facial features, while the librarian wears glasses (of course) and a bun (double of course).
This is the story the librarian reads to the kids to keep them grinning when they say “read it again!” (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4556-2325-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Pelican
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2018
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
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
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