Another splendid tale from Egan (Friday Night at Hodges' Cafe, 1994), cautionary but with the accent squarely on the story line. Chestnut Cove, a sleepy little bohemia of hippopotami, has its peace shattered when the king sails in to announce a contest: the grower of the biggest, juiciest watermelon shall inherit his kingdom. The competition insidiously works a sour note into the bucolic atmosphere, provoking the droll citizenry into sullen nastiness. But when the chips are down, when Eloise the pig is stranded high on a precipice, the hippos close ranks, save the porker, awaken to their selfishness, and clear the rotten air. The message to this tale—greed can be a snake in any garden—is soft- pedaled; the narrative and the artwork share the front seat, with the moral dimension sitting quietly in the rear. When the hippos realize their unseemly behavior, they set it to rights without throwing about fistfuls of guilt. Egan's rich and lushly colored illustrations are pure pleasure: his townscapes and neighborhood tableaux have an immediacy that invite readers to step straight into the pages. As with his earlier work, Egan demonstrates why he is a rare bird: thoughtful, disarming, charming, and eccentric. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-395-69823-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1995
A book that will make young dog-owners smile in recognition and confirm dogless readers' worst suspicions about the mayhem caused by pets, even winsome ones. Sam, who bears passing resemblance to an affable golden retriever, is praised for fetching the family newspaper, and goes on to fetch every other newspaper on the block. In the next story, only the children love Sam's swimming; he is yelled at by lifeguards and fishermen alike when he splashes through every watering hole he can find. Finally, there is woe to the entire family when Sam is bored and lonely for one long night. Boland has an essential message, captured in both both story and illustrations of this Easy-to-Read: Kids and dogs belong together, especially when it's a fun-loving canine like Sam. An appealing tale. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8037-1530-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1996
Sloat collaborates with Huffman, a Yu’pik storyteller, to infuse a traditional “origins” tale with the joy of creating. Hearing the old women of her village grumble that they have only tasteless crowberries for the fall feast’s akutaq—described as “Eskimo ice cream,” though the recipe at the end includes mixing in shredded fish and lard—young Anana carefully fashions three dolls, then sings and dances them to life. Away they bound, to cover the hills with cranberries, blueberries, and salmonberries. Sloat dresses her smiling figures in mixes of furs and brightly patterned garb, and sends them tumbling exuberantly through grassy tundra scenes as wildlife large and small gathers to look on. Despite obtrusively inserted pronunciations for Yu’pik words in the text, young readers will be captivated by the action, and by Anana’s infectious delight. (Picture book/folktale. 6-8)
Pub Date: June 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-88240-575-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
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