A meaty tale of the quest for an uncatchable fish named Oscar is told in folksy, irresistible language. Simon Henry's outstanding features are his ability to catch any fish and brag about it, his unsociable temperament, and his tight boots. In pursuit of his passion, he ignores even the ``Friday-Night-Potluck-Everybody-Come-and-Fling'' party in town. One day, Potato Kelly, female proprietor of the bait and chowder shop, tells him of the ``crafty, bait-grasping catfish'' in local waters, and the chase is on. The two odd-looking middle-aged characters wager with each other in colorful phrases about Simon Henry's ability to succeed. Since his socks ``were beginning to smell worse that sour milk, worse than secret-recipe stinkbait,'' he uses them as a lure. The catfish clamps on and tows the fishing boat like the shark in Jaws, finally leaving only half a sock behind. Simon Henry must do all the humiliating things he promised, and Oscar lives on, singing in the deep hole by Higgins Bend. The watercolor illustrations exaggerate as much as the text: Figures and landscapes sway with the artist's lyrical lines; perspectives as if from odd camera lenses distort and amuse. Some of the townspeople look quite goofy, but they also look familiar, in a tale clearly fished from American waters. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-395-67583-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1997
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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