A 46-page, short-story-scope record of the day Los Angeles high-school football player Luther spends waiting for an offer from Ohio State. Luther and his two friends Griff and Dan, all seniors, are the Chalmers High stars known as "the three from C." Dan, who is deaf, will be playing for Queens, the local junior college, but the other two are holding out for the big time. The St. Francis star, they hear, got a Buckeye offer by phone yesterday; and now, arriving home from school, Griff gets one in the mail. Luther is out when his phone call comes that night, and everyone has heard about it before the coach calls back next day. . . to explain personally that Luther is just too small for the Buckeyes. Embarrassed, Luther lets people think he's turned down Ohio State to support Dan at Queens (at Chalmers, Luther has tapped out the signals to him)—but he owns up when that embarrasses Dan. Later, though, when a full-tuition offer comes from San Diego State ("semi-big time college ball"), Luther tears up the letter. "It had nothing to do with big old Dan, Luther told himself. Nothing whatever," are the story's final words. Except for the "hecks" and "shoots" which make Luther seem pretty square, the brevity and situational suspense might suit this as a hi-lo entry. However, the two-bit characterization doesn't prepare readers to accept that final goody-goody decision.
Pub Date: March 1, 1981
ISBN: 039731941X
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Lippincott
Review Posted Online: April 17, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1981
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
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