Rhymes and rebuses see a young boy through his perhaps-not-so-sick-after-all day off from school tale from the two mistresses of this format. Our hero wakes up feeling a tad off. As he lies in bed, he sings a little cumulative poem of the things he will need: “I need a box of tissues, in case I sneeze . . . I need an extra blanket, if you please.” Blankets and pillows and a cozy cat soon give way to finger puppets and puzzles and, hey—why not?—a few cartoon programs on TV. After some tea and toast, when things get cracking, his mother pokes her head in his bedroom: “You think I’m not sick / because I did a tumbling trick? / You say if I were really ill, / I’d not complain, I’d just lie still?” Just when he’s beginning to feel a twinge of guilt about the whole thing, it’s discovered that there is no school that day on account of snow. “That is too bad! Hurrah! Hurray! / I’m glad I’m feeling well today!” Now that’s a nifty out, allowing a good laugh where some tsk-tsking is otherwise called for. “Once again, Parker’s guileless, watercolor and colored-pencil illustrations keep pace with the gathering rhyme, fitting rebuses into the verse text so that young readers can join in. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: April 30, 2001
ISBN: 0-688-17380-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Echoes of Runaway Bunny color this exchange between a bath-averse piglet and his patient mother. Using a strategy that would probably be a nonstarter in real life, the mother deflects her stubborn offspring’s string of bath-free occupational conceits with appeals to reason: “Pirates NEVER EVER take baths!” “Pirates don’t get seasick either. But you do.” “Yeesh. I’m an astronaut, okay?” “Well, it is hard to bathe in zero gravity. It’s hard to poop and pee in zero gravity too!” And so on, until Mom’s enticing promise of treasure in the deep sea persuades her little Treasure Hunter to take a dive. Chunky figures surrounded by lots of bright white space in Segal’s minimally detailed watercolors keep the visuals as simple as the plotline. The language isn’t quite as basic, though, and as it rendered entirely in dialogue—Mother Pig’s lines are italicized—adult readers will have to work hard at their vocal characterizations for it to make any sense. Moreover, younger audiences (any audiences, come to that) may wonder what the piggy’s watery closing “EUREKA!!!” is all about too. Not particularly persuasive, but this might coax a few young porkers to get their trotters into the tub. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25425-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Rick the bear and his pal, Jack the rabbit, star in their second emergent reader, featuring just one or two short and simple sentences per page. Rick is sick in bed and Jack tries to help by bringing hot tea and an ice pack, by sitting on Rick’s tummy, and finally by curling up next to Rick for a nap. McPhail’s appealing animal characters are full of expression as always, with the pair of devoted friends featured in circular watercolor-and-ink illustrations alternating with pages of text. The actual story is just 16 pages long, with the remaining pages devoted to a follow-up activity (creating a friendship award), a page of discussion questions, author biography, and two pages of information about the Green Light Readers series, including a list of titles. This format seems intended for classroom use and includes guided reading and Reading Recovery levels for teachers. (Easy reader. 5-7)
Pub Date: April 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-15-205091-4
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Green Light/Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2004
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