The prolific Polacco (The Trees of the Dancing Goats, 1996, etc.) tells a cumulative tale of the mayhem that ensues when a bee lands on a tree at an outdoor restaurant, setting off a frenzied chain of events; "The House That Jack Built" provides the blueprint—"This is the bee that stopped on a tree in Enzo's splendid gardens." A boy who drops his book to look at a bee causes the waiter to trip, splashing a drink on a matron, forcing ladies to trip and spill their tea, resulting in a man face down in the dessert tray, who jostles the chef, and so forth. The rhyme scheme gets the better of Polacco, with awkward rhythms that deviate from the pattern. As the chaos spreads, the lines become jarring: "Here comes Enzo, full of spaghetti, chasing his cat, whose name is Lettie, hoping to catch her, but she thinks not and runs through the room, wearing the pot that was jostled and spilled." The result is a glorified food fight. The illustrations are crowded with swarms of restaurant-goers whose mouths show perpetual astonishment, but the staging is clumsy, too. Readers cannot follow the action as it is choreographed in the scenes, e.g., the waiter is suspended mid-air for two spreads, implying a short passage of time, while another man in those pages goes from a relaxed pose sitting behind a table to running away in panic some distance from the scene, indicating that the time that has lapsed is longer. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 14, 1997
ISBN: 0-399-23107-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1997
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
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
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