In a sketchy tale likely to make its deepest impression on adult readers, a supportive teacher brings out a lad’s inner “superpowers.” Perfect Man, a caped superhero, has resigned and vanished, but young Michael, his biggest, most obsessive fan, is not dismayed, for, Michael is convinced, his idol has come back in disguise as the new teacher, Mr. Clark. Mr. Clark may be thinning on top, and shaped like a pear, but he’s unfailingly enthusiastic, never breaks chalk, knows just how to defuse playground contretemps, and best of all, he “looked into people. He saw all the good stuff and helped them bring it out. He helped them find their super powers.” In Michael’s case, Mr. Clark praises his writing, and when Michael grows up to be an author—of “Perfect Man” tales, naturally—becomes his biggest fan. Rather than try for a comic-book look, Griffiths illustrates with full-page scenes of only slightly caricatured figures; he gives Perfect Man and Mr. Clark similar smiles, but otherwise leaves the superhero’s true fate ambiguous. A few children might identify Mr. Clark with a favorite teacher of their own, but even here his special qualities are clearer in retrospect. (Picture book. 7-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2004
ISBN: 1-55143-286-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
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
Nolen and Nelson offer a smaller, but no less gifted counterpart to Big Jabe (2000) in this new tall tale. Shortly after being born one stormy night, Rose thanks her parents, picks a name, and gathers lightning into a ball—all of which is only a harbinger of feats to come. Decked out in full cowboy gear and oozing self-confidence from every pore, Rose cuts a diminutive, but heroic figure in Nelson’s big, broad Western scenes. Though she carries a twisted iron rod as dark as her skin and ropes clouds with fencing wire, Rose overcomes her greatest challenge—a pair of rampaging twisters—not with strength, but with a lullaby her parents sang. After turning tornadoes into much-needed rain clouds, Rose rides away, “that mighty, mighty song pressing on the bull’s-eye that was set at the center of her heart.” Throughout, she shows a reflective bent that gives her more dimension than most tall-tale heroes: a doff of the Stetson to her and her creators. (author’s note) (Picture book. 7-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-15-216472-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Silver Whistle/Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2003
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