Anyone who thinks cows are dumb and slow has never met Marta. A trendsetter who thinks for herself, she likes the quiet kind of transportation, but she likes testing her limits, too. So while her bovine friends dream of becoming train engineers, Marta sets out to build herself a bicycle. Determined, Marta finds parts in a junkyard, but when she’s done, she’s going to race her custom-made bike, and quicker than you can say Lance Armstrong, she does. Before that, however, she must learn to ride in a strikingly droll couple of pages (just think: cow on bike) that are a lesson for children learning to ride themselves. Indeed, newcomer Zullo doesn’t forget his young audience while recounting all the simple fun and then providing a twist ending. A visit to Switzerland would bring, among other souvenirs, images of mountains, cows, and brightly clad bike riders. Equally, the French Swiss author—along with illustrator Albertine, who is from Geneva—turns the legendary fondness of his countrymen for cows and bicycle riding into a cartoon-bright, happy can-do character and a story with a subtle sprinkling of a French lesson for good measure. Marta’s indomitable spirit plunging forth into new experiences is hard to resist. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2002
ISBN: 1-929132-35-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kane Miller
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2002
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
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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