Industrious Tsugele shocks her tradition-minded parents by announcing that she won't marry any man who isn't as reliable as her trusty besom. After rejecting two suitors, she strikes out on her own and finds a job in a nearby town. One morning her broom disappears; hunting for it, she meets an extremely thin, hard-working man with kind eyes and a stiff shock of golden hair. It's love at first sight. His name? Broom, of course. Tsugele accepts the miracle uncritically; readers may find the ending rather sudden, but will certainly pick up on Tsugele's happy independence. As usual, the simple gestures and comically exaggerated expressions Zimmer gives his figures closely reflect the story's turns while broadening the humor; woven woodcut borders around each scene, plus the characters' peasant dress, give this original tale a traditional air. (Picture book. 8-10)
Pub Date: March 30, 1993
ISBN: 0-06-020986-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
Hopper (The Queen of Put-Down, 1991) offers another light, humorous story focusing on the self-consciousness of preadolescence. Chelsea Zeller sees herself as a zebra in a herd of ponies—especially when friend Rachel announces a dress-up, bring-your-own-boy birthday party. Chelsea's interests lie elsewhere: she prefers jeans, writes poetry, loves science, and recently lost her pet tarantula. Boys aren't in the picture, except for C.R., whom she has alienated by announcing that he smells like cat dirt. However, with some coaxing and intervention from her mother and older sister, Chelsea succumbs to the need to fit in—and unwittingly attends the party with a third grader, complete with frogs in pockets, impersonating his seventh-grade brother Shawn. Weeks later, when Chelsea meets the real Shawn, she discovers that an interest in science doesn't preclude an interest in boys and that zebras may be better off than ponies. The story is short on substance, plays up the petty rivalries of ten-year-old girls, and hints at—but glosses over—sensitive issues, including peer pressure, interracial dating, and what it really means to be different. Still, it's a fun read that's bound to appeal to its target audience. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: June 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-8037-1420-3
Page Count: 138
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
After years of growing up with Collette Murphy, readers are thrust back in time to see what Sacred Heart Elementary is like from the perspective of one of her two best friends. Marsha has vowed not to get into trouble and to make this school year a good one, especially because she likes the student teacher, Miss Murtland. But Marsha's good intentions and penchant for lying butt up against Roger Friday's natural high spirits; the combination nearly gets one of them tossed out of school. McKenna fans will like this peek at Marsha's motives, often obscure in the other stories, but Roger's scenes are the real pleasure; the author paints an intriguing portrait of a boy who seems deceptively like a potential bully—perfectly exasperating but ultimately shown to be (fairly) well-meaning. The children have funny, typical school quarrels; as a writer of light fare, McKenna again weighs in with a real look at real kids. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-590-45123-5
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1993
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