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BLAIR'S NIGHTMARE

The Stanleys are back from Italy (The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case), more-or-less resettled in the Westerly House (The Headless Cupid)—where David, a shaky 13, doesn't know what to make of family-fantasizer Blair's nightly jaunts to see a dog in the yard. . . or how to deal with hulking, taunting classmate Pete Garvey. Adolescing stepsister Amanda is an enigma too—admiring Pete's physique, punching him out to protect David, looking sympathetic? pitying? And why does Pete start hanging around? But the problem that grows ever-bigger is Blair's dog. Dad and stepmother Molly quarrel over his clamp-down on Blair's "fantasizing." Six-year-old Blair's twin Esther, and resident-snoop Janie, huddle with him. A neighbor's smokehouse is broken into—only maybe by two escaped cons. On a spooky night—when the cons have just resurfaced, and Dad and Molly are out—the older children discover one thing at least: there is a real dog, a monstrous, gentle Irish wolfhound, whom the little children have named Nightmare. Further sleuthing by Janie (who spotted the breed in a book) explains his old bullet-wound and his fear of grown men: guard-dog training, by a vicious owner. All the more reason, then, to conceal Nightmare from Dad—who's already vetoed the idea of a dog, who'll feel obliged to contact the owner. The ensuing conspiracy is an all-hands, full-time operation. Nightmare spends nights with Blair and David, behind a warily locked door. (Once, Molly does demand admittance.) Days, he disappears—where? Massive as he is, he must be massively fed—hence the kibble caper. Then, for a couple of nights, he doesn't show up; Blair steals off to search for him; David finds both of them—turning up the fugitive cons (sick, dejected), bringing them in, becoming an embarrassed/ pleased hero. Amanda has made her new sisterly feelings known. Pete, confiding his (transparent) interest in Amanda, tells the still-droopy David not to confuse fighting and courage. As for Nightmare, you know Dad won't be able to resist his oversized appeal, his part in the heroics, or Molly's good-natured teasing. ("How could an imaginary dog be a burden?") The family mix continues to work its charm, the personalities to unfold independently—with more to be seen or heard, it appears, of Blair's elusive friend Harriet.

Pub Date: March 9, 1984

ISBN: 0375895159

Page Count: 196

Publisher: Atheneum

Review Posted Online: May 9, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1984

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CARPENTER'S HELPER

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.

Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

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SPOOKY POOKIE

A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character.

One of Boynton's signature characters celebrates Halloween.

It's Halloween time, and Pookie the pig is delighted. Mom helps the little porker pick out the perfect Halloween costume, a process that spans the entire board book. Using an abcb rhyme scheme, Boynton dresses Pookie in a series of cheerful costumes, including a dragon, a bunny, and even a caped superhero. Pookie eventually settles on the holiday classic, a ghost, by way of a bedsheet. Boynton sprinkles in amusing asides to her stanzas as Pookie offers costume commentary ("It's itchy"; "It's hot"; "I feel silly"). Little readers will enjoy the notion of transforming themselves with their own Halloween costumes while reading this book, and a few parents may get some ideas as well. Boynton's clean, sharp illustrations are as good as ever. This is Pookie's first holiday title, but readers will surely welcome more.

A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: July 7, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-553-51233-5

Page Count: 18

Publisher: Robin Corey/Random

Review Posted Online: July 26, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016

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