The idea that household pets lead more exciting lives at night than we might imagine, a popular picture book premise, gets a stylish—maybe too stylish—workout here. By day, Irving Dog and Ermine Cat come when called, meekly submit to being leashed, and eat from dishes. But “Our Children Give Us Those Names / But We Do Not Have Those Names / I n s i d e / Our / Dog / And / Cat / H e a d s.” When the lights go out, the two transform into plumed, swashbuckling rivals/allies, battling happily about the kitchen, chasing a (masked, caped) rat through the living room until they break a lamp, then sacking out to “Catch A / B r e a t h / And / Pass / A / Flea / Or / Two” until morning. Adoff’s shaped lines crank up the verbal intensity, but sometimes impose an artificial rhythm, and because every word is capitalized and heavily boldfaced, that intensity soon grows monotonous. Furthermore, in Cepeda’s roughly finished oils, Cat and Dog don’t seem to enjoy their daytime roles much, which may lead young viewers to wonder why they bother to hide their inner selves at all. Still, this will resonate with thoughtful readers who understand that, when Adoff writes of dreams and secret identities, he’s not just referring to pets. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-82599-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2001
The wriggly narrator of Diary of a Worm (2003) puts in occasional appearances, but it’s his arachnid buddy who takes center stage here, with terse, tongue-in-cheek comments on his likes (his close friend Fly, Charlotte’s Web), his dislikes (vacuums, people with big feet), nervous encounters with a huge Daddy Longlegs, his extended family—which includes a Grandpa more than willing to share hard-won wisdom (The secret to a long, happy life: “Never fall asleep in a shoe.”)—and mishaps both at spider school and on the human playground. Bliss endows his garden-dwellers with faces and the odd hat or other accessory, and creates cozy webs or burrows colorfully decorated with corks, scraps, plastic toys and other human detritus. Spider closes with the notion that we could all get along, “just like me and Fly,” if we but got to know one another. Once again, brilliantly hilarious. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-06-000153-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Joanna Cotler/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2005
Rylant (Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers, 1998, etc.) slips into a sentimental mode for this latest outing of the boy and his dog, as she sends Mudge and Henry and his parents off on a camping trip. Each character is attended to, each personality sketched in a few brief words: Henry's mother is the camping veteran with outdoor savvy; Henry's father doesn't know a tent stake from a marshmallow fork, but he's got a guitar for campfire entertainment; and the principals are their usual ready-for-fun selves. There are sappy moments, e.g., after an evening of star- gazing, Rylant sends the family off to bed with: ``Everyone slept safe and sound and there were no bears, no scares. Just the clean smell of trees . . . and wonderful green dreams.'' With its nice tempo, the story is as toasty as its campfire and swaddled in Stevenson's trusty artwork. (Fiction. 6-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-689-81175-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1998
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