French (Once Upon a Picnic, 1996, etc.) mirrors Hans Christian Andersen in an original Thumbelina-like fairy tale, in which a child, magically born of a thistle, comes to a childless king and queen. They are so happy that they build protective gates and walls around the kingdom and garden to keep every harm and everyone away from their beloved daughter. The princess misses the children she once laughed and played with, and in her isolation grows more and more despondent, until little is left but a wisp. Sadly, she blows away like a seed in the wind, but not until her true work is done. The story, with its lovely sentiments, is almost overwhelmed by the intentionally flowery language, but some children will take to the telling with their whole hearts. Delicate watercolor illustrations make use of borders to gracefully frame text and depict elongated toy-soldier-like figures prancing among the topiaries. Especially enchanting is the bookmaking_a fine design on creamy paper that feels satiny to the touch. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-7636-0307-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1998
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
When lonely Crocodile Gene advertises for friends in the paper, a nondescript animal named Floptop and a little girl named Gail respond. The three of them are so satisfied with their newly formed friendship, they decide to match up all the lonely souls in the world. It's no easy task finding companions for characters as lacking in personality as the ones presented by Uspensky (The Little Warranty People, p. 709, etc.). A monkey who has difficulty talking, a bully who is failing in school, and a giraffe who loses friends in holes are among the many applicants. Floptop suggests building a ``House of Friendship'' where everyone can come make friends, and, despite the interference of the crotchety old hag, Fedora, and her pet rat, the edifice is completed and the friendship problem resolved. Everyone finds a suitable partner. Although this Russian story deals with comradeship, its flat characters and flagging plot make it an imperfect companion for the solitary reader. (Fiction. 6-8)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-679-82062-0
Page Count: 124
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1994
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Little Kit is at first delighted to be mistaken for a boy and given work with a flea circus. An orphan in 19th-century London, her prospects have never been brighter. But she soon discovers that the delightful performing fleas are prisoners, just as she is, to the evil Professor Malefetta. She exists on gruel and crusts until they travel to the country, where she becomes friends with Nell Derry. While Kit is bathing one night, a pickpocket discovers her secret; she runs to the Derry home where she is taken in as one of their own. This is an atmospheric tale that suffers from a sweeping effort to comment on several aspects of Victorian London at once. Child labor, fleas' rights, city squalor vs. country hygiene—all are enmeshed in a plot resolved simplistically and fast. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-8037-1671-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1995
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