A charming, beautifully illustrated tale that shows that kids don’t need magic to cure loneliness.
In this children’s picture book, told in rhyming verse, a lonely girl agrees to find a lost duck in exchange for a magical spell.
“Gwendolyn Gates was moved by the fates,” begins Bayless’ debut, its rocking rhythms reminiscent of Robert W. Service’s poems. Gwen’s family has just moved to a farm, and she has no friends yet. Wandering about, she spies a Roma woman who offers her a spell against loneliness—but first, Gwen must find the woman’s missing duck, Rupert. Gwen searches all day before catching sight of the waterfowl, who leads her on a chase. Then the baker’s daughter, Chloe, gets involved, as does stableboy Billy. Although they don’t capture Rupert, the Roma woman still gets him back, and Gwen’s new friends make her no longer lonely. Author/illustrator Bayless’ verse scans well; he uses his loping meter to excellent effect, carrying readers along as Gwen runs around field and town searching for mischievous Rupert. His watercolors are lovely, with good draftsmanship, detail, and expression. The soft washes of green, brown, and blue in the hillsides and village make a good contrast to Gwen’s brighter red hair and orange coat. Every page is worth lingering over, and the story’s optimism and energy give the pleasing message that when you get involved, you make friends.
A charming, beautifully illustrated tale that shows that kids don’t need magic to cure loneliness.Pub Date: April 27, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-9976671-4-1
Page Count: 34
Publisher: Bayless Studios
Review Posted Online: June 27, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
In her first children's book, Parton (the country music star) turns one of her songs into a saccharine tale about a girl who is so poor that her mama has to sew her a patchwork coat when the weather turns cold. (Joseph and his coat of many colors are mentioned but never explained.) Despite the girl's love for her coat, she is teased in school, which she counters by trying to explain to her classmates ``that one is only poor/if they choose to be.'' The logic here is as flawed as the grammar, and Sutton's illustrations, while competent, show a well-dressed, happy rural family who look anything but poor. The text is both clumsy and irrelevent (it ends with ``Through life I've remained happy/and good luck is on my side./I have everything that anyone/could ever want from life.'') An apparently autobiographical song that has a hard time standing on its own as a compelling children's story. (Picture book. All ages)
Pub Date: Sept. 30, 1994
ISBN: 0-06-023413-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1994
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Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
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