Keller’s (Jacob’s Tree, 1999, etc.) popular preschool character Horace returns in a sympathetic tale about impulsive childhood theft. Horace discovers a terrific orange truck on the playground and pockets it. When confronted by Walter, the truck’s owner, during class, Horace lies, telling their teacher that the truck belongs to him. Overcome with guilt but unwilling to relinquish his newfound treasure, Horace feigns an illness to stay home from school. From his classmates come a bevy of get-well notes, including a gracious one from Walter telling Horace to keep the toy until he is better. The next day Horace returns to school and voluntarily gives the truck back. Keller handles this sensitive but very common childhood issue with finesse. The continued loving affirmation of all the adults around him helps Horace to make the right choice. Some may take issue with the fact that there are no consequences for Horace beyond his own feelings of guilt, and Walter, the victim, is never given any support from their teacher. However, Horace—and the reader—learns the lesson so much better because his decision to return the truck comes from within and not because he is compelled to do so by an adult. Keller’s bright watercolors offer a varied landscape, alternately filling some pages completely and interspersed amongst the text on others. Her cheerful menagerie of animals—Horace is a leopard, Walter a tiger, and the teacher a zebra—amuse and engage as readers learn a vital lesson. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: May 31, 2000
ISBN: 0-688-17159-1
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000
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
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
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