An amusing story of imagination crashing with reality, balanced well with skillful illustrations.
In Hoff’s illustrated children’s book, a young boy sets out to prove that he is, in fact, a pirate.
One morning, a boy named Stephen stands up on his kitchen chair and announces his new occupation. In response, his sister, Alicia, notes, “I don’t think pirates stand of kitchen chairs.” “They do when they’re not at sea,” counters Stephen. This isn’t the first time that Stephen has decided to have a new job; it’s revealed that, on previous occasions, he’d said that he was an astronaut and a professional heel-toe polka dancer. But unlike those unsuccessful attempts at being something other than a young boy standing at his kitchen table, he’s truly dedicated to being a pirate this time—and he leaves his home to prove it. Almost immediately, he runs into an elderly bakery owner who claims to have once been a pirate inspector for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. To prove his worth, Stephen agrees to undertake a series of tests which don’t seem particularly piratelike, such as pulling weeds and sweeping away cobwebs, all while passing by other kids who aren’t pirates but seem to be having a lot more fun than he is. Throughout Hoff’s book, there’s a pleasing mix of rhyme, dialogue, and a few full-page illustrations that keep the story bouncing along and make it well-suited for a read-aloud. Stephen is a believable and relatable character, and his changing emotions during his journey are sharply captured by Froese’s somewhat-minimalistic full-color cartoon illustrations. The bakery owner’s escalation of alleged pirate tests will amuse young readers, and her expressions of faux-surprise are well-rendered. Both Stephen and the bakery owner are portrayed with pale skin; other children have a range of skin tones.
An amusing story of imagination crashing with reality, balanced well with skillful illustrations.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Jan. 16, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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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