Feuding over a trifle earns two brothers the lifelong sorrow of a severed relationship, a pathetic circumstance that Van Leeuwen manages to invest with a degree of censorious humor. Ebenezer and Obadiah live in the north country, where the winters are long and their farm is rocky. But they toil together, close as siblings can be, each assuming appropriate tasks: one cooks, the other milks the cow, one plays the fiddle, the other the mouth organ. Then one day Obadiah criticizes Ebenezer’s oatmeal. “Lumps,” he says. Ebenezer objects, whether because of “too much winter or too much pride” is not clear—but the bowl of oatmeal he dumps on Obadiah’s head is plain as day. Obadiah objects, and stops talking to Ebenezer. Same goes for Ebenezer. They go so far as to cut their home in half and tow their sides to opposing hilltops. And so it goes, for generation after generation, despite the many moments they dearly wish they could commune with one another—when they get married and when they have children and grandchildren. Alas, neither can ever summon the simple word that would do the trick. That is left to the great-grandchildren, one of whom—on Ebenezer’s side—wrongly gets accused of stealing apples by one from Obadiah’s side. Near to blows, Nathaniel thinks to utter “Sorry,” and a familial relationship is reborn. Van Leeuwen’s story has enough melancholy to make her point clear, while Sneed’s demonstrative, hammy watercolors maintain a steady pulse of wry comedy. His hillbillies are all bulgy noses and gawky limbs; the household details, countryside, and livestock as picturesque as they are parody. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: May 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-8037-2261-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned.
All the reasons why a daughter needs a mother.
Each spread features an adorable cartoon animal parent-child pair on the recto opposite a rhyming verse: “I’ll always support you in giving your all / in every endeavor, the big and the small, / and be there to catch you in case you should fall. / I hope you believe this is true.” A virtually identical book, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad, publishes simultaneously. Both address standing up for yourself and your values, laughing to ease troubles, being thankful, valuing friendship, persevering and dreaming big, being truthful, thinking through decisions, and being open to differences, among other topics. Though the sentiments/life lessons here and in the companion title are heartfelt and important, there are much better ways to deliver them. These books are likely to go right over children’s heads and developmental levels (especially with the rather advanced vocabulary); their parents are the more likely audience, and for them, the books provide some coaching in what kids need to hear. The two books are largely interchangeable, especially since there are so few references to mom or dad, but one spread in each book reverts to stereotype: Dad balances the two-wheeler, and mom helps with clothing and hair styles. Since the books are separate, it aids in customization for many families.
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned. (Picture book. 4-8, adult)Pub Date: May 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-6781-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
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