BEANY (NOT BEANHEAD) AND THE MAGIC CRYSTAL

Beany—Bernice Lorraine Sherwin-Hendricks, the heroine from Don't Call Me Beanhead (1994)—is back. This time, Beany has a magic crystal that she believes holds one wish. Her dilemma is what to wish for. Should she use it to get the Sharing and Caring loving cup? Or to find the lost class hamsters? In five hilarious chapters—one of which recalls the plot of Jake Wolf's Daddy, Could I Have an Elephant? (1996) - -Wojciechowski takes familiar circumstances (getting lost, school pictures, and birthday parties) and shows them from a Beany's-eye view. Beany is the girl everyone wants for a friend: She's likable and well-intentioned without being a goody-goody. Her bossy best friend's makeover of Beany for school pictures, involving hair rollers, white magic marker, and duct tape, is fresh and funny, and puts Beany into the very good company of Ramona, Fudge, and Anastasia. Natti's black- and-white illustrations are right on target; readers will use their own magic crystals to wish Beany back again. (Fiction. 6-10)

Pub Date: July 1, 1997

ISBN: 0-7636-0052-0

Page Count: 94

Publisher: Candlewick

Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1997

Did you like this book?

No Comments Yet

WILD, WILD WOLVES

At ``Step 2'' in the useful ``Step into Reading'' series: an admirably clear, well-balanced presentation that centers on wolves' habits and pack structure. Milton also addresses their endangered status, as well as their place in fantasy, folklore, and the popular imagination. Attractive realistic watercolors on almost every page. Top-notch: concise, but remarkably extensive in its coverage. A real bargain. (Nonfiction/Easy reader. 6-10)

Pub Date: April 1, 1992

ISBN: 0-679-91052-2

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1992

Did you like this book?

No Comments Yet

RIVER STORY

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 20, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000

Did you like this book?

No Comments Yet
more