Captain Invincible is a sandy-haired boy astronaut, off on a space mission with his sandy-haired space-dog, Comet, in this addition to Murphy’s popular MathStart series (Seaweed Soup, below, etc.). Boy and dog are trying to return to Earth in their spaceship with the help of a control panel that contains six buttons in different three-dimensional shapes. They encounter some deep-space dangers (a meteor shower, a cloud of poison gas, a flying saucer, a galactic beast) and activate the three-dimensional buttons in turn to produce special effects to fight off the various threats. Each 3-D shape is described within the text, and the special effect or weapon incorporates a similar shape (for example, the cone-shaped button activates a large cone that sucks up all the poison gas). Finally the last button, a rectangular prism, releases the rectangular landing gear, and Captain Invincible and Comet crash-land in the center of the captain’s bedroom, where he returns to being a regular boy named Sam. The first-person text is told in speech balloons (except for the last page), in divided panels that coordinate with Simard’s cartoon-style illustrations. Teachers who are looking for stories that incorporate math concepts will use this space adventure with primary-grade students, and the comic book–influenced format will also appeal to older, more reluctant readers. (author’s note) (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-06-028022-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2001
Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your dreads! Isadora once again plies her hand using colorful, textured collages to depict her fourth fairy tale relocated to Africa. The narrative follows the basic story line: Taken by an evil sorceress at birth, Rapunzel is imprisoned in a tower; Rapunzel and the prince “get married” in the tower and she gets pregnant. The sorceress cuts off Rapunzel’s hair and tricks the prince, who throws himself from the tower and is blinded by thorns. The terse ending states: “The prince led Rapunzel and their twins to his kingdom, where they were received with great joy and lived happily every after.” Facial features, clothing, dreadlocks, vultures and the prince riding a zebra convey a generic African setting, but at times, the mixture of patterns and textures obfuscates the scenes. The textile and grain characteristic of the hewn art lacks the elegant romance of Zelinksy’s Caldecott version. Not a first purchase, but useful in comparing renditions to incorporate a multicultural aspect. (Picture book/fairy tale. 6-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-399-24772-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A Cinderella parody features the off-the-wall, whang-dang Texas hyperbole of Ketteman (The Year of No More Corn, 1993, etc.) and the insouciance of Warhola, who proves himself only too capable of creating a fairy godcow; that she's so appealingly whimsical makes it easy to accept the classic tale's inversions. The protagonist is Bubba, appropriately downtrodden and overworked by his wicked stepdaddy and loathsome brothers Dwayne and Milton, who spend their days bossing him around. The other half of the happy couple is Miz Lurleen, who owns ``the biggest spread west of the Brazos.'' She craves male companionship to help her work the place, ``and it wouldn't hurt if he was cute as a cow's ear, either.'' There are no surprises in this version except in the hilarious way the premise plays itself out and in Warhola's delightful visual surprises. When Lurleen tracks the bootless Bubba down, ``Dwayne and Milton and their wicked daddy threw chicken fits.'' Bubba and babe, hair as big as a Texas sun, ride off to a life of happy ranching, and readers will be proud to have been along for the courtship. (Picture book/folklore. 6-8)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-590-25506-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1997
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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