Good little Mommy and good little Daddy are back with their irrepressible, growing daughter, Agapanthus Hum (Agapanthus Hum and the Eyeglasses, 1999; Agapanthus Hum and Major Bark, 2001). She has finally lost her first tooth and that wonderful gap between her remaining teeth allows her to make a wild, whistling noise. Her parents call it an Angel Hoot and even her dog, Major Bark, gets into the celebration by howling along every time he hears the sound. Soon, canine and human have their own little hoot-and-howl vaudeville act for Agapanthus’s class at school. Cowley’s genius with new readers is that she knows her audience. Loose teeth, growing up, friendships, animals, and school are all topics that fascinate young children. They long to be as joyous as Agapanthus, so they enjoy her exuberance, even when it goes over the top. Her teacher, Miss Ryan, good little Mommy, and good little Daddy are the perfect adults: they nod, they repair life’s little accidents, they smile and wink, and mostly they stay blessedly out of the way. Plecas’s light, colorful illustrations are the ideal foil for Cowley’s world, with the heroine jumping right out of the background frames in her celebration of life. Major Bark comes into his own in the latest installment. He could very well join Gloria, of Officer Buckle fame, on the stage as he rolls on the floor and howls along with his beloved friend. A howling success. (Easy reader. 5-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-399-23344-X
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2002
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
Sloat collaborates with Huffman, a Yu’pik storyteller, to infuse a traditional “origins” tale with the joy of creating. Hearing the old women of her village grumble that they have only tasteless crowberries for the fall feast’s akutaq—described as “Eskimo ice cream,” though the recipe at the end includes mixing in shredded fish and lard—young Anana carefully fashions three dolls, then sings and dances them to life. Away they bound, to cover the hills with cranberries, blueberries, and salmonberries. Sloat dresses her smiling figures in mixes of furs and brightly patterned garb, and sends them tumbling exuberantly through grassy tundra scenes as wildlife large and small gathers to look on. Despite obtrusively inserted pronunciations for Yu’pik words in the text, young readers will be captivated by the action, and by Anana’s infectious delight. (Picture book/folktale. 6-8)
Pub Date: June 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-88240-575-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
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