It’s a political education—Schoolyard Politics 101—in a picture book, one well worth having on the bookshelf.
“And so it was one windy day that Louis the sheep thereby became Louis I, king of the sheep.” And, Kurt Vonnegut would add, so it goes.
Louis is out grazing when a crown blows his way. He tries it on. Voilà, Louis I. Soon, Louis I needs a scepter and a throne. He is ambitious: his court will become home to the most distinguished artists; ambassadors from the anteater, raccoon, and penguin kingdoms will all pay their respects. This leads to megalomania: he banishes the sheep that don’t resemble him to a distant pasture. But—the wind blows once more, taking the crown with it. Power comes, power goes; at least Louis gets to keep his head. (Maybe; the crown lands at the feet of a wolf. He tries it on.) Tallec’s book is sophisticated, but it also approaches the subject, visually and textually, from a kid’s-eye view. The colors (cadmium red, indigo, pinks shading to purples) beguile, and the imagery runs from fairly goofy-looking sheep to the royal luxury of an ermine stole to spooky trees that play with light and dark. Tallec leaves it up to readers to decide how much of Louis’ power trip is imaginary, giving them plenty of details to pore over while they muse.
It’s a political education—Schoolyard Politics 101—in a picture book, one well worth having on the bookshelf. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-59270-185-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
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