by Peter Sís & illustrated by Peter Sís ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 1993
In an intriguing global verso to his Follow the Dream (1991), S°s embroiders on an autobiographical tall tale, remembered by Jan Welzl (1868-1951) from his youth in Czechoslovakia. Welzl was a locksmith who escaped Eastern Europe to cross Siberia and make a life with the Eskimos. Shipwrecked off California in 1924, he was deported to Moravia, where he wrote several books that weren't always believed; there's a gravestone bearing his name in the Yukon. As S°s did in the book about Columbus, he supplies a simple text and contrasts intricate spreads incorporating Europe's confining walls and old maps with the broad expanses to which his hero escapes, while Welzl's adventures are depicted in series of tiny vignettes and other imaginative conformations. There's a fantastical encounter with a magnetic golden mountain, later invoked to divert gold diggers from disturbing Welzl's friends the Eskimos, who have generously taken him in and taught him to survive. This denouement isn't developed much; but the unusual story and the extraordinary visual delights accompanying it are not to be missed. (Picture book. 5-10)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-679-84345-0
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1993
Share your opinion of this book
by Josh Schneider & illustrated by Josh Schneider ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2011
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
Share your opinion of this book
More by Josh Schneider
BOOK REVIEW
by Josh Schneider ; illustrated by Josh Schneider
BOOK REVIEW
by Josh Schneider ; illustrated by Josh Schneider
BOOK REVIEW
by Josh Schneider ; illustrated by Josh Schneider
by Pete Seeger & Paul Dubois Jacobs & illustrated by Michael Hays ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2001
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
Share your opinion of this book
More by Pete Seeger
BOOK REVIEW
by Pete Seeger & Paul Dubois Jacobs & illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
BOOK REVIEW
by Pete Seeger & Paul Dubois Jacobs & illustrated by Michael Hays
BOOK REVIEW
adapted by Pete Seeger & illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Trouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Trouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.