Concocted with Mahy's usual incisive wit, a tall-tale concerning the sort of character that charmingly insinuates itself on the unwary, then makes life miserable with demands and threats. The lovely intruder here is a sinuous, many-headed plant whose several petulant faces resemble morning glories; her hapless victim is nice Mr. Parkin, who is passing harmlessly by with a wheelbarrow of soil intended for the more amiable pumpkins he favors when the importunate plant creeps out from under neighbor Lily Rose Willowherb's spiked gate and climbs aboard. Once home and properly potted, the plant shows its true colors, demanding entertainment—only a full orchestra can keep it from withering away. Luckily, Lily Rose comes to the rescue: she knows the plant is really "tough as old boots" and "practically a weed": it's Mr. Parkin who is "too soft and sensitive for a plant like this," and she sensibly rescues him by dragging it unceremoniously home. To those attuned, the satire here cuts with rapier precision, but Mahy's use of language is so deft and good-humored that her tale will also be read as more lighthearted hyperbole. Illustrator Craig nicely extends the characterizations, adding plenty of amusing details and a concerned bird and cat. Wickedly pointed; thoroughly amusing. (Picture book. 4-10)
Pub Date: May 27, 1991
ISBN: 0-688-10347-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1991
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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