That perennial source of child-misery—an uptight mother who's not sympathetic to pets, especially the ratty sort—is deftly and unblinkingly examined by Philippa Pearce, though the situation is too familiar, and the outcome too predictable, to yield one of her more memorable fictions. The two gerbils, Bubble and Squeak (after the English beef-and-cabbage dish), are really Sid's—bestowed upon him by an Australia-bound acquaintance—but it's doting Peggy who can tell them apart, and little Amy who squeals. As for unassertive stepfather Bill, well, he once had white mice as a boy. . . . So there's a rush of resentment when Mrs. S., unbeknownst, gives the gerbils away (Sid runs off to the town's glummest woods) and despair when—after their return and the ensuing "gerbil festival"-she puts out their cage for the garbage man. But: "Missus," he says devastatingly, "you can't do this. There's something alive in here." To comfort the horrified Amy, Mrs. S. promises not to send the gerbils away again. And Sid, who's been equally intransigent, reluctantly agrees to let them stay with Peggy's accommodating friend for a cooling-off period. The final pair of crises thus finds the family more or less united: Bubble is mauled by a cat, Mrs. S. helps administer medication, and on the former owner's reappearance (Australia "didn't suit"), everyone talks him over to acquiring replacements. An active story, intensely felt, discerningly put, and irresistibly pictured.
Pub Date: April 16, 1979
ISBN: 0754062171
Page Count: -
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 7, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1979
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
A nice but not requisite purchase.
A retelling of the classic fairy tale in board-book format and with a Mexican setting.
Though simplified for a younger audience, the text still relates the well-known tale: mean-spirited stepmother, spoiled stepsisters, overworked Cinderella, fairy godmother, glass slipper, charming prince, and, of course, happily-ever-after. What gives this book its flavor is the artwork. Within its Mexican setting, the characters are olive-skinned and dark-haired. Cultural references abound, as when a messenger comes carrying a banner announcing a “FIESTA” in beautiful papel picado. Cinderella is the picture of beauty, with her hair up in ribbons and flowers and her typically Mexican many-layered white dress. The companion volume, Snow White, set in Japan and illustrated by Misa Saburi, follows the same format. The simplified text tells the story of the beautiful princess sent to the forest by her wicked stepmother to be “done away with,” the dwarves that take her in, and, eventually, the happily-ever-after ending. Here too, what gives the book its flavor is the artwork. The characters wear traditional clothing, and the dwarves’ house has the requisite shoji screens, tatami mats and cherry blossoms in the garden. The puzzling question is, why the board-book presentation? Though the text is simplified, it’s still beyond the board-book audience, and the illustrations deserve full-size books.
A nice but not requisite purchase. (Board book/fairy tale. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-7915-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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