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WHERE IS THE APPLE PIE?

Name: WHERE IS THE APPLE PIE?
Author: Valeri Gorbachev
ISBN: 0-399-23385-7

by Valeri Gorbachev ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1999

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From Gorbachev (Nicky and the Big, Bad Wolves, 1998, etc.), an evanescent cumulative story that takes readers on a treasure hunt that ends before the treasure—an apple pie—is recovered. A billy goat is strolling along the lane when its neighbor, the pig, issues a greeting and asks where the goat has been. The goat replies that he has been to the bakery, where he bought an apple pie, but robbers stole it. “Where are the robbers?” asks the pig, launching a call-and-response session as the goat’s one-line answers trigger further one-line queries from the pig. That pie has been carried into a forest that burns, and out into a lake, across the desert, and all the way to horizon through fog and wind. For most spreads, the goat and pig chat companionably on one page while opposite it, the pie’s adventures are transpiring, complete with thefts, forest fires, wind storms, and camels drinking their fill. The pig tenders a final summary of all that went before, as meanwhile the entire cast of characters amass. “So where is the apple pie?” Not here. The pace is crisp, the punch line a breeze, and the whole package is lighter than pie crust; children will pick up the pattern of the chatter quickly and join in the pig’s questions at story hours. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999

ISBN: 0-399-23385-7

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Philomel

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1999

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
THERE WAS A TURKEY ON THE FARM
by Valeri Gorbachev ; illustrated by Valeri Gorbachev

- BOOK REVIEW
LOST AND FOUND DUCKLINGS
by Valeri Gorbachev ; illustrated by Valeri Gorbachev

- BOOK REVIEW
NO SWIMMING FOR NELLY
by Valeri Gorbachev ; illustrated by Valeri Gorbachev

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FROGGY PLAYS SOCCER

by Jonathan London ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 1999

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This latest Froggy title (Froggy Goes to School, 1996, etc.) is utterly unfocused, with the star careening from soccer dolt to Mr. Superkick. Froggy’s team has a big game coming up with the Wild Things, and he is trying to remember the mantra his father, and assistant coach, taught him: “Head it! Boot it! Knee it! Shoot it! But don’t use your hands!” But illegally touching the ball seems to be the least of Froggy’s worries; distraction is his problem. He is so busy turning cartwheels, tying his shoes, and more, that the only time he makes contact with the ball is when it bounces off his head by mistake. Then, when the Wild Things make a breakaway, Froggy has some dazzling moves to avert a score, but forgetfully grabs the ball at the last second. The other team gets a penalty kick, converts it, but then Froggy makes a field-long kick for a game-winning score. London forces Froggy into too many guises—the fool, the hero, the klutz, the fancy dancer—but none of them stick. Remkiewicz’s illustrations have charm; it is in their appeal that this book will find its audience. (Picture book. 2-6)

Pub Date: March 1, 1999

ISBN: 0-670-88257-7

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1999

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS

- BOOK REVIEW
HERE COMES SHOPKEEPER HIPPO
by Jonathan London ; illustrated by Gilles Eduar

- BOOK REVIEW
HERE COMES TRUCK DRIVER HIPPO
by Jonathan London ; illustrated by Gilles Eduar

- BOOK REVIEW
FROGGY FOR PRESIDENT!
by Jonathan London ; illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz

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THE BARN OWLS

by Tony Johnston ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 2000

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From Johnston (An Old Shell, 1999, etc.), poetic phrases that follow a ghostly barn owl through days and nights, suns and moons. Barn owls have been nesting and roosting, hunting and hatching in the barn and its surroundings for as long as the barn has housed spiders, as long as the wheat fields have housed mice, “a hundred years at least.” The repetition of alliterative words and the hushed hues of the watercolors evoke the soundless, timeless realm of the night owl through a series of spectral scenes. Short, staccato strings of verbs describe the age-old actions and cycles of barn owls, who forever “grow up/and sleep/and wake/and blink/and hunt for mice.” Honey-colored, diffused light glows in contrast to the star-filled night scenes of barn owls blinking awake. A glimpse into the hidden campestral world of the elusive barn owl. (Picture book. 4-8)