Determined to marry the poorest—and most handsome—of the princes vying for her hand, the princess sends them for ``the rarest thing'' each can find. The wonders they bring when they meet a year later are similar to those in ``The Princess Nouronnihar and the Three Rarities'' in The Arabian Nights: a flying carpet, a crystal ball, and a life-restoring orange. Kimmel eliminates details of the princes' quests to focus on their discovery (through the crystal ball) that the princess is deathly ill, their return to her via the carpet, her recovery after eating the orange, and her choice of her original beloved on the grounds that only he has given up his treasure to save her life (in The Arabian Nights version, the princess's uncle—who's also the princes' father—makes this judgment; Kimmel makes the princes cousins, not brothers). Both Fisher and Kimmel provide notes. The artist details using acrylics over chalk and black underpainting to create his luminous double spreads; Kimmel doesn't cite specific sources, but he does mention Egyptian, Moroccan, and Persian versions as well as the tale's inclusion in ``later editions'' of The Arabian Nights. A smooth, accessible adaptation, much enhanced by the spare, powerful art. (Folklore/Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 15, 1994
ISBN: 0-8234-1115-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1994
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
A book that will make young dog-owners smile in recognition and confirm dogless readers' worst suspicions about the mayhem caused by pets, even winsome ones. Sam, who bears passing resemblance to an affable golden retriever, is praised for fetching the family newspaper, and goes on to fetch every other newspaper on the block. In the next story, only the children love Sam's swimming; he is yelled at by lifeguards and fishermen alike when he splashes through every watering hole he can find. Finally, there is woe to the entire family when Sam is bored and lonely for one long night. Boland has an essential message, captured in both both story and illustrations of this Easy-to-Read: Kids and dogs belong together, especially when it's a fun-loving canine like Sam. An appealing tale. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8037-1530-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1996
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