An atmosphere of restrained grief and quiet struggle suffuses this almost inspirational story from Howard (A Different Kind of Courage, p. 170, etc.) that draws on the experiences of 19th- century pioneers. The story opens as Elvirey's family—grandmother, father, sister, and brother—buries her mother and leaves Carolina by wagon for Michigan. Their father is against bringing along Mam's things- -``There ain't no room for suchlike,'' Pap says. Granny defiantly brings along a bag of quilting scraps, saying, ``I aim to set on it.'' After a long trip west, they clear the land and build a log cabin, but it never feels like home. One cold fall day Pap leaves them all to go hunting. Night falls and the cabin grows colder and lonelier. As the moss and dirt between the logs freeze and fall out, Elvirey chinks the walls with fabric scraps, making the ``log cabin quilt'' of the title. Pap, on his return, says, ``Your mam would be proud. The place is downright homey.'' Elvirey observes that it isn't the scraps but ``Mam's name said out loud'' that makes the cabin home. Himler's soft pencil and watercolor paintings show unusual grace and are most affecting in the spot illustrations and exterior scenes. The interiors are darker, and quite accurately, muddier. This meditation on a small triumph over loss will add humanity to school units on the pioneers. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1996
ISBN: 0-8234-1247-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1996
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The seemingly ageless Seeger brings back his renowned giant for another go in a tuneful tale that, like the art, is a bit sketchy, but chockful of worthy messages. Faced with yearly floods and droughts since they’ve cut down all their trees, the townsfolk decide to build a dam—but the project is stymied by a boulder that is too huge to move. Call on Abiyoyo, suggests the granddaughter of the man with the magic wand, then just “Zoop Zoop” him away again. But the rock that Abiyoyo obligingly flings aside smashes the wand. How to avoid Abiyoyo’s destruction now? Sing the monster to sleep, then make it a peaceful, tree-planting member of the community, of course. Seeger sums it up in a postscript: “every community must learn to manage its giants.” Hays, who illustrated the original (1986), creates colorful, if unfinished-looking, scenes featuring a notably multicultural human cast and a towering Cubist fantasy of a giant. The song, based on a Xhosa lullaby, still has that hard-to-resist sing-along potential, and the themes of waging peace, collective action, and the benefits of sound ecological practices are presented in ways that children will both appreciate and enjoy. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-83271-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2001
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