Review by Booklist Review
Gr. 2-3, younger for reading aloud. First published in 1910, these 16 classic animal stories by the influential Burgess are newly illustrated in full color. Hague's paintings alternate between full-page landscapes and half-page portraits of Reddy Fox, Jimmy Skunk, Billy Mink, Peter Rabbit, and others. Old Mother West Wind and her children and the mischievous Merry Little Breezes have fairylike qualities that lend a whimsical character to the animals' already enchanted habitat; the rich, bright colors of the animals' clothing work well against the green countryside. Hague's twilight and nighttime scenes are especially effective in bringing this special world to young readers, and his underwater scenes featuring Grandfather Frog and Mrs. Trout are especially well executed. A handsome book designed to enchant and to be shared. --Kathryn LaBarbera
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Michael Hague illustrates three collections of time-proven tales. Originally published in 1910, Old Mother West Wind by Thornton W. Burgess introduces a group of enchanting woodland creatures, the Merry Little Breezes, Reddy Fox and Tommy Trout among them, to a new generation of readers. Michael Hague's Favorite Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales offers nine classic stories including The Snow Queen, Thumbelina and The Little Mermaid, all adapted by Jane Woodward. And lastly, Hague portrays the lush habitat of Toad, Mole, Rat and Badger in Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. The handsomely designed oversize volumes present Hague's artwork in framed spreads and spot illustrations, just right for lap reading. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Horn Book Review
The lavish illustrations overwhelm the sentimental stories of Peter Rabbit, the Merry Little Breezes, and their playmates of field, stream, and wood. The Merry Little Breezes look as if they stepped out of a German fairy tale, and wise Old Dame Nature would be more at home in eighteenth-century France than in the New England countryside. From HORN BOOK 1990, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
