A father is not going off to the office in the morning, his son fantasizes; instead, he’s riding the range tall in the saddle, rounding up cattle rustlers. Carter’s Wild West make-believe works as a vignette about a father-son cowboy fantasy, but is less successful in conveying what in the story is or is not pretend. When the father pedals off to work on a stolen bike, it appears his son thinks of the bikes as horses and they’re off on a cattle round-up. First they hogtie tattletale Jen and mean-mouthed Ben (siblings? friends? Is the father justified in going along with their poor treatment?); around the bend lurk cattle thieves, but these two cowboys fend them off. McPhail’s illustrations have both realistic and dreamy qualities to them that match the story’s mood, yet with the elements of this daydream so poorly defined, the fantasy never takes off. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1999
ISBN: 1-55143-154-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1999
In a book that shows one kind of conflict resolution, Hugo, a shy frog with a small croak, learns to be more assertive with the help of a duck. Hugo lives in terror of the big frogs, especially Pop Eyes, a bully who dumps Hugo into the pond upside down, snatches his stick, and splashes him. Duck teaches Hugo to quack loudly when threatened, and the next time the bully frogs come around, Hugo opens his mouth and bellows “QUACK!” The result of this surprising emission is that birds scatter, butterflies flutter, fish flap, and the bully frogs fall into the pond. Church’s art gives the frogs, fish, snails, and worms of this story bright colors and ping-pong-ball eyes, plus the requisite goofy expressions. A funny story, with surprises that will have toddlers giggling. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: Dec. 1, 1999
ISBN: 1-86233-093-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sterling
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
Hopping is not hard, for a frog, but when he asks other animals to join him, he finds that bats flap, lobsters snap, and dust flies when an especially large rhinoceros stomps. None of the creatures can do what the frog does so well, until he meets a rabbit, and it becomes a friendship bound by bounding. Vere’s creatures are reminiscent of Sandra Boynton’s: smiling, bright, and lively, unrestrained by this board book’s small dimensions. A hopping good time. (Board book. 1-4)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-531-30131-1
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Orchard
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1999
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