This spirited book celebrates the joys of recycling. Mama is the creative force here, turning beribboned bicycle tires into basketball hoops and spatulas into roof shingles. When her zealous scavenging fills up the front yard with too many old tubas, refrigerators, sofas, and canoe paddles, her children beg her to stop. But, ever the eccentric visionary, Mama perseveres until she has built a found-object house worthy of press coverage and a marching band. Her final coup is a handmade rocket ship in which she flies her children round and round the world, emphasizing the what-goes-around-comes-around theme of the book. Van Laan (The Tiny, Tiny Boy and the Big, Big Cow, 1993) manages to keep this story light and joyful without ever getting preachy about recycling. The rhymes do not always read easily, but Westcott's funny, cartoonish illustrations keep things lively enough that it doesn't really matter. The end result is a humorous book about the afterlife of everyday objects, and a creative look at an important issue. (Fiction/Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 23, 1994
ISBN: 0-7868-0009-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1994
A book that will make young dog-owners smile in recognition and confirm dogless readers' worst suspicions about the mayhem caused by pets, even winsome ones. Sam, who bears passing resemblance to an affable golden retriever, is praised for fetching the family newspaper, and goes on to fetch every other newspaper on the block. In the next story, only the children love Sam's swimming; he is yelled at by lifeguards and fishermen alike when he splashes through every watering hole he can find. Finally, there is woe to the entire family when Sam is bored and lonely for one long night. Boland has an essential message, captured in both both story and illustrations of this Easy-to-Read: Kids and dogs belong together, especially when it's a fun-loving canine like Sam. An appealing tale. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8037-1530-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1996
Sloat collaborates with Huffman, a Yu’pik storyteller, to infuse a traditional “origins” tale with the joy of creating. Hearing the old women of her village grumble that they have only tasteless crowberries for the fall feast’s akutaq—described as “Eskimo ice cream,” though the recipe at the end includes mixing in shredded fish and lard—young Anana carefully fashions three dolls, then sings and dances them to life. Away they bound, to cover the hills with cranberries, blueberries, and salmonberries. Sloat dresses her smiling figures in mixes of furs and brightly patterned garb, and sends them tumbling exuberantly through grassy tundra scenes as wildlife large and small gathers to look on. Despite obtrusively inserted pronunciations for Yu’pik words in the text, young readers will be captivated by the action, and by Anana’s infectious delight. (Picture book/folktale. 6-8)
Pub Date: June 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-88240-575-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
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