The title reference to Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess has no bearing upon the content of this story, making it seem like a gimmick rather than a thoughtful choice. Characters are not African Americans, but anthropomorphic animals: Porky, a sloppy pig, and Bess, a fastidious mother cat. Throughout five short chapters, the odd-couple friends at turns enjoy one another’s company and struggle to see past their differences. Winborn’s watercolor illustrations enhance the story (of particular note is the humorous clothing she creates for Porky) and provide visual cues for readers as they follow Porky’s efforts to bake a cake (aided by Bess) and to write a poem in tribute to their friendship. Readers will likely arrive at the concluding rhyme Porky struggles to create well before he does: “And when the day is at an end, / I like that Bess is my best friend.” The brief chapters are broken into short paragraphs, and although this isn’t a particularly exciting read, this structure and the story’s resolution will be satisfying for new readers. (Early reader. 6-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-375-85458-3
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 30, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2010
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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