Pajama Press

“Captain Barnacle Garrick displayed all the characteristics of the typical bad pirate; he was saucy, bold and selfish. His daughter, Augusta, however did not follow the pattern. Around the pirate ship she was kind-hearted and helpful, never saucy and bold. She could never be a bad pirate until she did something selfish! Was now the time to make her father proud?

This delightful pirate spoof uses vocabulary in an interesting way to develop the story. Key words such as saucy, bold, and selfish, plus typical pirate expressions such as Aye! Arr! and Land ahoy! are found in bold, large print. The dialogue in bubbles is also colloquial and fun. This text should be a great read-aloud.

Each page is filled with colourful, humourous illustrations depicting the pirate ship and swarthy crew. Emphasizing the common reference to pirates as ‘sea dogs’, each pirate on the ship is cleverly drawn as a different breed of dog, including ‘peg-leg Scully, a white bull terrier. Augusta, in contrast, is a winsome spaniel. This story should amuse and delight young readers as well as prove to be a starting point for interesting discussion regarding personal characteristics. It is highly recommended for both a classroom and school library collection.”

“Although it opens with yet another dead mother, Evie Brooks Is Maroonedin Manhattan is a fresh take on the duck out of water trope. Evie finds herself living in Manhattan with her uncle, a veterinarian—about as far from her late mother’s bohemian life in Dublin as Evie can imagine. After a few funky days, Evie starts lending a hand with the animals, making friends, discovering the city, plotting against Uncle Scott’s scheming girlfriend, and learning how to cope with grief that sometimes leaves her breathless and afraid. This is a quick-moving novel, and Evie is by turns smart, cheeky, stubborn, and introspective—a highly identifiable and likeable lead character, even when the characters who surround her are somewhat less rounded.

Evie’s narrative voice is appealing but distinctive. The author plays with differences in accents, diction, and cultural views, but rarely allows Evie to become a cliché or a type. The novel is finely managed for the middle-grade reader, with hints of concerns more typical of YA novels though the book’s roots remain in childhood…”

“Ben’s friend is moving away. Ben does not want to see his friend go and does not want to say goodbye. These are difficult concepts for young children to have to learn. Ben creates his cave world to help him come to terms with the loss of his friend. When Ben has spent the time he needs to move forward, he leaves his imaginary world and rejoins his family in their world. He also spies the possibility of making a new friend when he sees the scooter wheeled outside the moving truck next door.

This is an excellent resource to use in helping a young child through the difficult time of families moving from the neighbourhood. Making new friends is sometimes hard to do, but Ben’s experience speaks to the problem from the point of view of that young child and shows that it is possible to do. Highly recommended for parents, young children, classroom discussions, and story time.”

“During the preschool years, children often forge their first friendships and these relationships can be very intense. Here, Sarah Ellis explores how a young boy handles his sadness when his best friend moves away.

Ben is distraught because his best friend is leaving the neighbourhood. He opts to move, too, and seeks refuge in a cave (the space under the kitchen table) where his sole companion is a tamed (stuffed) lion. Adopting the persona of a cave boy, Ben resorts to grunting the sole sound of “guh” when his family speak to him.

While camped out in his makeshift dwelling, Ben finds solace in his two imagined stories about friendship. Using a pointed stick (pencil), he sketches his tales as a series of drawings on the walls of his cave. One tale tells of two boys who are best friends and of their fun and heroic antics. The other tale tells of two friends, living on different sides of the world, who dig their way to reunite in the centre of the Earth for a short visit.

When Ben smells butter in the air, he emerges from his cave and rejoins his family to share some popcorn. When he hears a moving truck’s beeping from across the street, he heads to the window to investigate the sound. From his post on the couch, Ben spies a neon-blue Scorcher Scooter—just the perfect size for a new pal.

The author offers a charming and delightful story in which a preschooler’s feelings and thoughts ring true. La Fave’s endearing softly-hued illustrations, accentuated by black outlines, accompany this gentle tale. Ben’s cave drawings, rendered in black on an ochre background, populate the book’s endpapers. This is a clever touch that offers readers an additional visual level on which to extend and enjoy the story.

Readers who wish to read more about Ben and his adventures will also enjoy A+ for Big Ben (a recent board-book version of Ellis and La Fave’s 2001 title, Big Ben).”

—Carol-Ann Hoyte

Couëlle and Laplante celebrate kisses, be they big or small, quick or “slurpy.” Both the writing and artwork have a sweetly haphazard quality—Laplante’s scraggly illustrations look authentically kid-drawn, the meter of Couëlle’s verse varies wildly, and she sneaks in a few extemporaneous unrhymed moments. “Some kisses make noises: big ones like… smooch! And little ones like… peck!” she writes as a startled dog’s ear raises in alarm while a doting grandmother kisses her granddaughter’s forehead. Whether kisses are meant to mitigate soccer injuries or signal hello or goodbye, Couëlle and Laplante make it clear that “a shower of kisses never misses.”

Click here to read this review on the PW website

“I have long admired the work that Rob Laidlaw does to help protect wild animals from the indignity of being held captive, whether by a circus or a zoo. His books for children have informed, enlightened and encouraged readers to get involved in making a difference in the life of any animal.

In his newest book Rob tells the story of three elephants from the Toronto Zoo who are eventually moved to a healthier place, where they might live their lives as they were meant to be lived. Their story is compelling and caused a lot of anxiety for those who love animals.

…Brian Deines’ fabulous oil paintings chronicle their trip. His paintings were made using footage from the trip, and accurately portray for interested readers the joy and bravery of these magnificent pachyderms as they journeyed across a vast land to a more suitable home.

Back matter includes clear and appealing photographs, captioned with accurate and much appreciated further information. An Acknowledgements section, and an index can also be found there…”
—Sally Bender

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“…Couëlle’s gentle reminders of the magic of kisses are simply and poetically rendered on each page. The story, though translated from French, still holds a slight charming rhyme.

Jacques Laplante’s illustrations are the perfect mix of vibrant colour and black lines that enhance the playfulness of Couëlle’s story. Laplante’s artistic style is reminiscent of Quentin Blake, with messy pen strokes and dashes of bright hues. The artist aptly chose a lot of red and pink tones throughout the drawings which amp up the feeling of being surrounded by love. Laplante’s fun illustrations wonderfully accent Couëlle’s verse.

Jennifer Couëlle’s Kiss, Kiss is a book that should be read to remind listeners of how loved they are, as well as how powerful a kiss can be. Kiss, Kiss would also make a wonderful gift book, whether to a child, friend, or significant other—no matter who the reader may be, the ultimate message of the story will not be lost: love is important.”
—Nikita Griffioen

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“…As in Bender’s earlier books about this twosome, Bender’s bold acrylic illustrations will sometimes amusingly tell a story that differs from what the text reports. For example, when the text reads, “Giraffe enjoys the peace and quiet of a nap”, it would be logical to conclude that it is Giraffe who is having the nap. However, on the page facing this text, Bird is shown joyously hopping from branch to branch in the tree, with one of the “branches” being Giraffe’s head. The illustration accompanying the nap text reveals an annoyed Giraffe peering into a nest in which Bird has settled down for his nap.

An excellent addition to the “Giraffe and Bird” series.

Highly Recommended”
—Dave Jenkinson, CM’s editor, lives in Winnipeg, MB.

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“The latest visual feast from Wallace Edwards is designed to spur the imagination of young readers (and older ones, too). Each page features an image and “Once upon a line,” followed by the beginnings of a story (“there was a great race. No one knew who would come first until the fluffy one began to…”). It’s up to readers to determine what comes next, though Wallace provides many possibilities in his detailed illustrations packed with flora and fauna (and a single pen stroke repeated in each image, which Wallace challenges us to spot). From a knight riding an octopus to a gaggle of laughing alligators, there’s no shortage of silliness here to inspire raucous bedtime yarns.”
—Dory Cerny, Quill & Quire

“…Losing a friend to a move is a familiar experience for children and adults alike, and this story will resonate with readers. Readers will relate to Ben’s unwillingness to say goodbye and his inclination to hide away and remember the fun times he and Peter had together. However, after being given some time and space to process his complicated emotions, Ben emerges ready to connect with his supportive family and consider the possibility of new friendships. The text of the story is accessible and simple…The text also accurately captures the thoughts and feelings of a young child dealing with a sad life change.

The illustrations by Kim LaFave in this story appear to be a combination of drawn and computer-generated, and they strongly support the text They are colourful and engaging, and the facial expressions on the characters are expressive. They also add depth and undertone to the text that is not there without them. For example, when the text describes Ben retreating under the table, he is said to have a club, a pointed stick, and a tame lion. Readers will see though through the illustrations that these are really a flashlight, a pencil, and a stuffed lion. The cave drawings that Ben appears to draw are also excellent, depicting a world of fancy and imagination perfect for a creative child. The entire feel of the pages with his drawings is completely different from the feel of the illustrations in the rest of the book, which serves the story well. It is also an interesting device to watch the progression of Ben’s stuffed lion in the book go from neglected toy to his only friend to security blanket.

…Ben Says Goodbye would be a good purchase for public libraries and school libraries that serve children in the preschool/kindergarten age group.

Highly Recommended”

—Carla Epp is a hospital librarian with the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, MB.

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