An old adage (“If you love someone set them free”) and a message about respect for nature combine in this sweet story. Newman tells it simply, with just a few lines of text per page (“Mole found a baby bird. It had fallen out of its nest”). Benson’s (Squeak’s Good Idea, 2001, etc.) delicate illustrations, which appear to be rendered in watercolor and pen and ink, are similarly unadulterated. In the opening spread, for example, Mole—wide-eyed with his paws behind his back—observes the wayward baby. On the facing page, the two appear in nearly the same position with only their expressions changed (Mole bemused, the bird confused). When Mole brings the bird home to his parents, they offer an honest assessment of what it means to care for such a creature. “They usually die,” says his father. Still, Mole is determined to beat the odds and, under his care, the bird prospers. But when it tries to fly, Mole moves swiftly to keep the bird grounded. Benson’s vignettes are full of touching detail: as Mole transports lumber to build a cage, for example, the bird carries nails in his beak. Only Grandpa can help Mole see the animal’s true nature and, in the end, Mole does what’s best for the bird. This enjoyable story is so subtly crafted, with text and illustration so perfectly paired, that youngsters will eagerly read between the lines, making it a natural choice for read-aloud sessions and a good starting place for discussions about the environment, relationships, and more. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 1-58234-784-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2002
BOOK REVIEW
The wriggly narrator of Diary of a Worm (2003) puts in occasional appearances, but it’s his arachnid buddy who takes center stage here, with terse, tongue-in-cheek comments on his likes (his close friend Fly, Charlotte’s Web), his dislikes (vacuums, people with big feet), nervous encounters with a huge Daddy Longlegs, his extended family—which includes a Grandpa more than willing to share hard-won wisdom (The secret to a long, happy life: “Never fall asleep in a shoe.”)—and mishaps both at spider school and on the human playground. Bliss endows his garden-dwellers with faces and the odd hat or other accessory, and creates cozy webs or burrows colorfully decorated with corks, scraps, plastic toys and other human detritus. Spider closes with the notion that we could all get along, “just like me and Fly,” if we but got to know one another. Once again, brilliantly hilarious. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-06-000153-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Joanna Cotler/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2005
Rylant (Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers, 1998, etc.) slips into a sentimental mode for this latest outing of the boy and his dog, as she sends Mudge and Henry and his parents off on a camping trip. Each character is attended to, each personality sketched in a few brief words: Henry's mother is the camping veteran with outdoor savvy; Henry's father doesn't know a tent stake from a marshmallow fork, but he's got a guitar for campfire entertainment; and the principals are their usual ready-for-fun selves. There are sappy moments, e.g., after an evening of star- gazing, Rylant sends the family off to bed with: ``Everyone slept safe and sound and there were no bears, no scares. Just the clean smell of trees . . . and wonderful green dreams.'' With its nice tempo, the story is as toasty as its campfire and swaddled in Stevenson's trusty artwork. (Fiction. 6-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-689-81175-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1998
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