Just because new readers will read just about anything they can decode, doesn’t mean they should have to. This newest offering in Aladdin’s Ready-for-Chapters has many of the hallmarks of a successful tale for new readers: comical storyline and wacky illustrations, generous font, brief chapters, and a heroine who stands up to a bully. Unfortunately, there’s not much to the story. Marlon is on vacation where she hears about a camp for pirates. Her distracted mother signs her up and, through some mildly humorous situations, Marlon learns to be a pirate. When she returns to school, no one believes her pirate camp stories until Peg Leg and Shark Bait see her distress flag, show up, and vouch for her. Though the illustrations are amusing and exaggerated, the story is simply flat. The attempts at pirate dialogue are confusing. “We’ll save that for tomorrow. But today ye’re swinging over to that there boat. ‘Carz sometimes ye’ll have to board another ship and do battle.’ ” Huh? One can almost hear the pitter-patter of second-grade feet up to the teacher for an interpretation of that. Readers who are making the transition to chapter books and who like funny stories might find the work of Pinkwater, Pilkey, and Scieszka more captivating. (Fiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-84384-4
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2002
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Trickling, bubbling, swirling, rushing, a river flows down from its mountain beginnings, past peaceful country and bustling city on its way to the sea. Hooper (The Drop in My Drink, 1998, etc.) artfully evokes the water’s changing character as it transforms from “milky-cold / rattling-bold” to a wide, slow “sliding past mudflats / looping through marshes” to the end of its journey. Willey, best known for illustrating Geraldine McCaughrean’s spectacular folk-tale collections, contributes finely detailed scenes crafted in shimmering, intricate blues and greens, capturing mountain’s chill, the bucolic serenity of passing pastures, and a sense of mystery in the water’s shadowy depths. Though Hooper refers to “the cans and cartons / and bits of old wood” being swept along, there’s no direct conservation agenda here (for that, see Debby Atwell’s River, 1999), just appreciation for the river’s beauty and being. (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-7636-0792-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000
Every year since kindergarten, Harry’s Halloween costume has gotten scarier and scarier. What’s it going to be this year? He’s not telling. His classmates are all stunned when he shows up, not as some monster or a weird alien (well, not really)—but as neatly dressed Sgt. Joe Friday of Dragnet fame, wielding a notebook and out to get “just the facts, ma’am.” As she has in Harry’s 11 previous appearances (15, counting the ones his classmate Song Lee headlines), Kline (Marvin and the Mean Words, 1997, etc.) captures grammar-school atmosphere, personalities, and incidents perfectly, from snits to science projects gone hilariously wrong. She even hands Harry/Friday a chance to exercise his sleuthing abilities, with a supply of baby powder “fairy dust” gone mysteriously missing. As legions of fans have learned to expect, Harry comes through with flying colors, pinning down the remorseful culprit in 11 minutes flat. No surprises here, just reliable, child-friendly, middle-grade fare. Illustrations not seen. (Fiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-670-88864-8
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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