by Doug Johnson & illustrated by Tammy Smith ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2002
A classroom teacher himself, Johnson (James and the Dinosaurs, 1995) pays tribute to the resourcefulness of substitutes. When weary Miss Huff accidentally leaves her own wish list for vacation—rather than a class schedule—on her desk before taking a day off, her replacement Mrs. Martin takes it at face value. She follows the list, organizing without apparent effort, trips to the amusement park, beach, and ski slope, scuba and sky-diving expeditions, and for a grand finale, a visit to the circus—where she reveals that her other job is Lion Tamer. The children, all wide-eyed, rubber-limbed clay figurines in Smith’s candy-colored illustrations using clay, acrylic, collage, and Photoshop, have a terrific time though in the end are just as happy to have Miss Huff back. She’s all rested after following the list for the substitute having had a lovely time reading aloud to her cat, playing Scrabble (spelling), playing hopscotch (recess), and paying bills (math). What would Viola Swamp think? (Picture book. 7-9)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-8050-6520-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2002
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by Meredith Hooper & illustrated by Bee Willey ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2000
Trickling, bubbling, swirling, rushing, a river flows down from its mountain beginnings, past peaceful country and bustling city on its way to the sea. Hooper (The Drop in My Drink, 1998, etc.) artfully evokes the water’s changing character as it transforms from “milky-cold / rattling-bold” to a wide, slow “sliding past mudflats / looping through marshes” to the end of its journey. Willey, best known for illustrating Geraldine McCaughrean’s spectacular folk-tale collections, contributes finely detailed scenes crafted in shimmering, intricate blues and greens, capturing mountain’s chill, the bucolic serenity of passing pastures, and a sense of mystery in the water’s shadowy depths. Though Hooper refers to “the cans and cartons / and bits of old wood” being swept along, there’s no direct conservation agenda here (for that, see Debby Atwell’s River, 1999), just appreciation for the river’s beauty and being. (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-7636-0792-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000
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by Jerdine Nolen & illustrated by Kadir Nelson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2003
Nolen and Nelson offer a smaller, but no less gifted counterpart to Big Jabe (2000) in this new tall tale. Shortly after being born one stormy night, Rose thanks her parents, picks a name, and gathers lightning into a ball—all of which is only a harbinger of feats to come. Decked out in full cowboy gear and oozing self-confidence from every pore, Rose cuts a diminutive, but heroic figure in Nelson’s big, broad Western scenes. Though she carries a twisted iron rod as dark as her skin and ropes clouds with fencing wire, Rose overcomes her greatest challenge—a pair of rampaging twisters—not with strength, but with a lullaby her parents sang. After turning tornadoes into much-needed rain clouds, Rose rides away, “that mighty, mighty song pressing on the bull’s-eye that was set at the center of her heart.” Throughout, she shows a reflective bent that gives her more dimension than most tall-tale heroes: a doff of the Stetson to her and her creators. (author’s note) (Picture book. 7-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-15-216472-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Silver Whistle/Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2003
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