Henry is a born inventor—literally. By the age of six, he had built an elaborate machine that filled his room and spilled into the bathroom. As years of obsessive building go by, the family is completely displaced by the enormity of Henry’s inventions. The boy’s proud parents do eventually question the method in their son’s madness: “Now, Henry. You have ‘Whipping things, whapping things, / Clapping, snapping, slapping things, / Tracking things, hacking things, / Smacking, cracking, whacking things! . . . BUT, HENRY, WHAT DOES IT DO?’ ” In the end, Henry’s invention does indeed find a purpose: a carnival is born as the phenomenal machine attracts curious onlookers and enterprising food vendors, dancers, and musicians of all shapes and sizes. The story drags on a bit, but Brooker’s comical, wonderfully multi-textured collage illustrations steal the show. Readers will be mesmerized by the madcap mélange of ramps, clocks, dice, propellers, and metal dragonflies (often photographed and pasted into the collage) that make up Henry’s amazing machine. If there’s a point, it’s probably that not everything has to have one. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 16, 2004
ISBN: 0-374-32953-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Melanie Kroupa/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2004
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
Sloat collaborates with Huffman, a Yu’pik storyteller, to infuse a traditional “origins” tale with the joy of creating. Hearing the old women of her village grumble that they have only tasteless crowberries for the fall feast’s akutaq—described as “Eskimo ice cream,” though the recipe at the end includes mixing in shredded fish and lard—young Anana carefully fashions three dolls, then sings and dances them to life. Away they bound, to cover the hills with cranberries, blueberries, and salmonberries. Sloat dresses her smiling figures in mixes of furs and brightly patterned garb, and sends them tumbling exuberantly through grassy tundra scenes as wildlife large and small gathers to look on. Despite obtrusively inserted pronunciations for Yu’pik words in the text, young readers will be captivated by the action, and by Anana’s infectious delight. (Picture book/folktale. 6-8)
Pub Date: June 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-88240-575-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
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