One day a most peculiar thing happened to Jason: Montague, his nose, left him a note on his pillow informing him that the mistreatment had to stop (blowing on scratchy paper towels, squishing against windows) and he took off. Jason can’t smell, his glasses keep slipping, and a sneeze is just plain nasty. His mom is unsympathetic (wiped his nose on his sleeve too many times) and his class stares and calls him No-Nose. Sent home from school, his grandfather recalls how the same thing happened to him, from sticking his nose in other people’s business, and he had to go to Nose Island to find it. He tells Jason to hitch a ride with the Ship of Lost Things; while onboard, the ship captain tells him never to take his nose for granted. When he lands on Nose Island, Jason discovers his nose has become king of the island. Montague orders a feast by throwing favorite foods on a bonfire to make delicious smells for the noses. Then he informs Jason of his plan for noses to take over the world. Taken prisoner, Jason manages to escape—without his nose—though when he returns to school, everyone there is noseless, too. Seems Montague has convinced all the noses in the world to join him. The first-person voice plays up the absurdity and the cartoon art matches the wacky story. A great variety of noses abounds, including the wooden one on the captain; the schnozzes and the color-saturated pages will attract readers. Unfortunately, while the idea is funny, the ending takes a nosedive, abruptly falling flat on its face. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-525-47013-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2002
Only for dedicated fans of the series.
When a kid gets the part of the ninja master in the school play, it finally seems to be the right time to tackle the closet monster.
“I spot my monster right away. / He’s practicing his ROAR. / He almost scares me half to death, / but I won’t be scared anymore!” The monster is a large, fluffy poison-green beast with blue hands and feet and face and a fluffy blue-and-green–striped tail. The kid employs a “bag of tricks” to try to catch the monster: in it are a giant wind-up shark, two cans of silly string, and an elaborate cage-and-robot trap. This last works, but with an unexpected result: the monster looks sad. Turns out he was only scaring the boy to wake him up so they could be friends. The monster greets the boy in the usual monster way: he “rips a massive FART!!” that smells like strawberries and lime, and then they go to the monster’s house to meet his parents and play. The final two spreads show the duo getting ready for bed, which is a rather anticlimactic end to what has otherwise been a rambunctious tale. Elkerton’s bright illustrations have a TV-cartoon aesthetic, and his playful beast is never scary. The narrator is depicted with black eyes and hair and pale skin. Wallace’s limping verses are uninspired at best, and the scansion and meter are frequently off.
Only for dedicated fans of the series. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-4894-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Thanks to parrot-toting Braidbeard and his gloriously disreputable crew, a lad discovers the ups and downs of a pirate’s life in this rousing mini-epic. His mom and dad busy on another part of the beach, young Jeremy happily joins a band of hook-handed, eye-patched, snaggle-toothed pirates aboard their ship, learning pirate table manners (none), enjoying a game of nautical soccer until a shark eats the ball, then happily retiring without having to brush teeth, or even don pajamas. But then Jeremy learns that pirates don’t get tucked in, or get bedtime stories, and as for good night kisses—Avast! Worse yet, no one offers comfort when a storm hits. So, giving over the pirate’s life, Jeremy shows the crew where to bury its treasure (his backyard), and bids them goodbye. Shannon outfits Braidbeard’s leering, pop-eyed lot in ragged but colorful pirate dress, and gives his young ruffian-in-training a belt and bandanna to match. This isn’t likely to turn pirate wannabees into landlubbers, but it will inspire a chorus of yo-ho-hos. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-15-201848-4
Page Count: 44
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2003
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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