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THE PAINTER

Name: THE PAINTER
Author: Peter Catalanotto
ISBN: 0-531-09465-0

by Peter Catalanotto & illustrated by Peter Catalanotto ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1995

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A child's view of family life. The father is a painter, the mother sits at home at a computer, a German shepherd gets into everything, and the narrator is a spunky, imaginative little girl who loves spending time with her father. They make breakfast, read the comics, and pretend they're magicians. But most of the time, Daddy disappears into his studio, where the dejected narrator isn't allowed. He lets her in after dinner, and she is delighted to be a painter, just like him. Catalanotto (Christmas Always..., 1993, etc.) creates sparkling watercolors that catch the morning light pouring in a kitchen window and evening shadows after supper. The loose, fluid style focuses on important details: the painter's tools, the ever- present dog, and the changing expressions on the little girl's face. The entire work is simply and beautifully done, modestly self-absorbed, by an illustrator who is searching for a story in his own backyard. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1995

ISBN: 0-531-09465-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Orchard

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1995

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
MONKEY & ROBOT
by Peter Catalanotto ; illustrated by Peter Catalanotto

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NEWBIES
by Peter Catalanotto ; illustrated by Peter Catalanotto

- BOOK REVIEW
MORE OF MONKEY & ROBOT
by Peter Catalanotto ; illustrated by Peter Catalanotto

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WHERE ARE YOUR SHOES, MR. BROWN?

by Justin Rhodes ; illustrated by Heather Dickinson ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 14, 2023

Pedestrian.

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Mr. Brown can’t help with farm chores because his shoes are missing—a common occurrence in his household and likely in many readers’ as well.

Children will be delighted that the titular Mr. Brown is in fact a child. After Mr. Brown looks in his closet and sorts through his other family members’ shoes with no luck, his father and his siblings help him search the farm. Eventually—after colorful pages that enable readers to spot footwear hiding—the family gives up on their hunt, and Mr. Brown asks to be carried around for the chores. He rides on his father’s shoulders as Papa gets his work done, as seen on a double-page spread of vignettes. The resolution is more of a lesson for the adult readers than for children, a saccharine moment where father and son express their joy that the missing shoes gave them the opportunity for togetherness—with advice for other parents to appreciate those fleeting moments themselves. Though the art is bright and cheerful, taking advantage of the setting, it occasionally is misaligned with the text (for example, the text states that Mr. Brown is wearing his favorite green shirt while the illustration is of a shirt with wide stripes of white and teal blue, which could confuse readers at the point where they’re trying to figure out which family member is Mr. Brown). The family is light-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Pedestrian. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: March 14, 2023

ISBN: 978-1-5460-0389-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: WorthyKids/Ideals

Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2022

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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BUNNY MONEY

From the Max & Ruby series

by Rosemary Wells & illustrated by Rosemary Wells ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1997

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In the siblings' latest adventure, their grandmother is having a birthday (again! see Bunny Cakes, p. 67), so Ruby takes Max shopping. A music box with skating ballerinas is Ruby's idea of the perfect present; Max favors a set of plastic vampire teeth. Ruby's $15 goes fast, and somehow, most of it is spent on Max. The music box of Ruby's dreams costs $100, so she settles for musical earrings instead. There isn't even a dollar left for the bus, so Max digs out his lucky quarter and phones Grandma, who drives them home—happily wearing her new earrings and vampire teeth. As ever, Wells's sympathies are with the underdog: Max, in one-word sentences, out-maneuvers his officious sister once again. Most six- year-olds will be able to do the mental subtraction necessary to keep track of Ruby's money, and Wells helps by illustrating the wallet and its dwindling contents at the bottom of each page where a transaction occurs. Younger children may need to follow the author's suggestion and have an adult photocopy the ``bunny money'' on the endpapers, so they can count it out. Either way, the book is a great adjunct to primary-grade math lessons. (Picture book. 4-7)