YO, VIKINGS!

A seemingly outrageous fantasy comes at least partly true for imaginative Emma when she’s able to purchase an actual Viking ship. A school project requires students to do reports on famous explorers; Emma’s is Erik the Red. She throws herself into the task, taking on his persona and donning Viking-esque garb as she researches his life and the culture of the Vikings with the help of her friendly librarian, Mr. Sigurd, who may have a little Viking blood in him himself. After giving her report, Mr. Sigurd shows Emma an advertisement for a Viking ship for sale for $7,000. After cobbling together $128, Emma writes to the sellers, begging them to consider selling her the ship rather than junking it; and remarkably, they agree. Children may not find a story about an imaginative girl on a quest for a used Viking ship particularly compelling or realistic, but the collage-style illustrations add a great deal of appeal and interest. They feature a trove of finds for observant readers, such as real books by the author on Mr. Sigurd’s shelves and books by other favorite authors in the library and in Emma’s room, Emma’s T-shirt reading “Leif Landed First,” a T-shirt on a gossipy schoolmate featuring a cat and the word “Ouch,” and snippets of maps and reference entries to Scandinavian lands used as clothing patterns. An author’s note includes facts about Vikings, a bit about the background of the story (the authors’ daughters really did procure a Viking ship from a Leif Ericsson organization), and a list of sources for further reading. (Picture book. 5-9)