The fifth entry in the Harry and Emily easy reader series finds the kitty-cat siblings ready to celebrate another holiday together. As lots of mild little tricks are played within their family, big brother Harry insists his little sister won’t be able to play any tricks on him. She cleverly waits till the very last minute on April Fool’s Day, and then—when Harry has given up on any more tricks—surprises him with all their tricks from the previous year. The final punch line is cunningly hidden in the art as Emily hides a toy snake under her brother’s pillow for one last laugh. It’s heartening to see the little sister prevail in a children’s story, using calm and controlled strategy to disprove her brother’s claim. Ruelle’s (Spookier Than a Ghost, 2001, etc.) simple watercolor illustrations are not sophisticated or innovative, but are charmingly direct and humorous, just like her story. Although this is intended for new readers at the second-grade reading level, it would also be an excellent read-aloud for younger children to explain the concept of April Fool’s Day. (Easy reader. 5-8)
Pub Date: March 15, 2002
ISBN: 0-8234-1686-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2002
Give this child’s-eye view of a day at the beach with an attentive father high marks for coziness: “When your ball blows across the sand and into the ocean and starts to drift away, your daddy could say, Didn’t I tell you not to play too close to the waves? But he doesn’t. He wades out into the cold water. And he brings your ball back to the beach and plays roll and catch with you.” Alley depicts a moppet and her relaxed-looking dad (to all appearances a single parent) in informally drawn beach and domestic settings: playing together, snuggling up on the sofa and finally hugging each other goodnight. The third-person voice is a bit distancing, but it makes the togetherness less treacly, and Dad’s mix of love and competence is less insulting, to parents and children both, than Douglas Wood’s What Dads Can’t Do (2000), illus by Doug Cushman. (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: May 23, 2005
ISBN: 0-618-00361-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2005
At her best, Rylant’s (The Ticky-Tacky Doll, below, etc.) sweetness and sentiment fills the heart; in this outing, however, sentimentality reigns and the end result is pretty gooey. Pandora keeps a lighthouse: her destiny is to protect ships at sea. She’s lonely, but loves her work. She rescues Seabold and heals his broken leg, and he stays on to mend his shipwrecked boat. This wouldn’t be so bad but Pandora’s a cat and Seabold a dog, although they are anthropomorphized to the max. Then the duo rescue three siblings—mice!—and make a family together, although Rylant is careful to note that Pandora and Seabold each have their own room. Choosing what you love, caring for others, making a family out of love, it is all very well, but this capsizes into silliness. Formatted to look like the start of a new series. Oh, dear. (Fiction. 6-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-689-84880-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2002
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