The inimitable Alicia grapples with the problem of jealous friends in this wise tale from Jahn-Clough (Alicia Has a Bad Day, 1994). Alicia adores all of her friends; she plays soccer with Mitchell, paints with Charlotte, laughs with Henry, and explores entomology with Lucy. To demonstrate her powerful affection for these buddies, Alicia decides to throw a “best friend” celebration. However, her guests of honor demand to know which one of them is really Alicia’s best friend. Frustrated by her quandary, Alicia declares her dog, Neptune, to be her closest pal. However, she soon discovers the companionship of a canine falls short of human friendship. Jahn-Clough presents a familiar childhood dilemma with compassion and honesty. Readers struggling with this issue will find humorous relief in Alicia’s exploits and salvation in her ingenious solution to the problem. After much internal debate, Alicia declares each one of her friends to be a best friend in a particular category, declaring one to be her best soccer friend, while another is her best painting friend, diplomatically acknowledging each individual’s special attribute. The brightly hued illustrations sparkle with the energy and vivacity of Alicia’s personality. The cartoon-style paintings reveal Alicia’s turmoil while retaining a healthy dose of humor. Alicia handles a thorny issue with her usual panache; readers will rejoice in the return of this spunky, bespectacled heroine. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 24, 2003
ISBN: 0-618-23951-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2003
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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