Taylor's comedies Agnes the Sheep (1991) and this latest have in common not only references to wool culture, but a zany point-of- view and some fairly unravelled scenes of domestic life in New Zealand. Charles is alarmed by the news of his mother's pregnancy, but makes a bet with precocious next-door neighbor Alice Pepper that he will knit a sweater for the little nipper by the time it is born. At stake: either he will pay her five dollars a week for the rest of her life, or she will bequeath to him all her notorious collections, including her assembly of skulls. Charles takes knitting lessons from a curmugeonly teacher, the very one to have unjustly suspended him from the hockey team for using bad language (Alice is the guilty party). He is able to keep his project a secret from nearly everyone; his two best chums ``catch'' him at it and sit down to revel in their own feats of knitting prowess. This is but one of many unexpected twists that will needle the funny bones of most middle graders; regular references to Charles's mother's expanding ``boobs'' will nail down the peculiar interests of the rest. With unpredictably comical depictions that never lapse into caricature, and descriptions of the sweater's progress that are a study in gleeful boyish pride, this blithe look at an expectant family has no dropped stitches. (Fiction. 8-12)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-590-45778-0
Page Count: 101
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1992
BOOK REVIEW
Beginning at the grocery, where most urban people today get food, Patent discusses the sources of foods that are made into such products as ``Tater Tots,'' ``V-8,'' and ``Uncle Ben's Converted Rice.'' Brief chapters discuss fruits and vegetables, grains, meats, and dairy products. Color photos contrast the various states: one spread includes shots of an appealing ``beef cow'' in a pasture, fresh cuts of meat, and a selection of processed beef products (e.g., Knox gelatine). Not about nutrition, but a useful awareness-builder. (Nonfiction. 8-11)
Pub Date: June 15, 1991
ISBN: 0-8234-0877-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1991
Krull's second book about her irrepressible heroine takes up the excitement and disappointments of show business. Now happily ensconced with her father in California while her mother works for a year in Japan, Alex is given the chance to audition for a part in rock star Rox Rox's latest video after making a triumphant appearance playing the piano at the fourth- grade Christmas play. In a flash, Alex—who has never previously heard of Rox Rox—goes into overdrive about her coming stardom. When she actually gets the job, her extreme enthusiasm begins to lose her friends and get her in trouble at school for inattention. When she discovers that she has been replaced with Rox's little sister (except for a shot of her hands playing the piano), her disillusionment is total. Alex has much energy, if not common sense, and Krull has a good ear for dialogue—some compensation for routine characters, language, and plot. An acceptable, if undistinguished, addition to young readers' collections. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: May 1, 1991
ISBN: 0-316-50479-3
Page Count: 60
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1991
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