Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
At the surprise ending of de Haan and Nijland's King & King, lonely Prince Bertie rejects five fairy-tale princesses and marries the handsome prince. In this upbeat sequel, illustrated in kaleidoscopic collages, newlywed Kings Bertie and Lee go on a tropical honeymoon. Although they have the sensation they are being followed (and they are), the jungle is inviting; "It seemed as if all the animals and their babies had turned out to greet them." They see fuchsia -and-orange parrots feeding a green worm to a pale-pink chick, watch a fuzzy brown monkey cuddling his sleeping baby, and photograph hippo and alligator families in the chartreuse-green river. "I wish we had a little one of our own," Bertie sighs. When they return to their kingdom-and to Bertie's mother (who looks much less sour than in the original)-they discover a tan-skinned, brown-haired stowaway in their suitcase. " `You're the child we always wanted,' said King and King," who file the necessary adoption papers and name the girl Princess Daisy. The warm conclusion befits the theme of unconditional acceptance. De Haan and Nijland, who collaborate on the words and pictures, create multimedia spreads that explode with hot colors and energetic patterns; the youthful Bertie and Lee beam fond smiles at Daisy and each other. By offering this endearing portrait of a diverse group, the authors promote the important message that love flourishes in traditional and nontraditional families alike. Ages 6-up. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-In this follow-up to King & King (Tricycle, 2002), King Lee and King Bertie have just married and embark on a honeymoon. As they fly off to jungle country, the two men soon discover that their cat has stowed away in their suitcase. The travelers happily tramp through the wilderness and paddle down a river, observing the wildlife as they go. Before long, they have a strange feeling that something is following them. Upon returning home, they discover another stowaway in their suitcase-this time it's a young girl from the jungle, whom they joyfully adopt and everyone lives happily ever after. The mixed-media collage illustrations are colorful with lots to look at on each page-perhaps too much, as some of the spreads are a bit cluttered. Bertie's travel diary is reproduced on the book's centerfold, hinting at the surprise ending. The text is brief and fun, and the relationships are treated matter-of-factly. However, children may wonder why the men do not try to find the little girl's family, or check to see if anyone is searching for her. All in all, this story about a nontraditional family is a bit heavy-handed.-Judith Constantinides, formerly at East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Primary) Fresh from their royal wedding (see King & King, rev. 7/02), King Bertie and King Lee are honeymooning in the jungle, where they enjoy the scenery as well as the sight of so many happy animal families. So they are pleased to discover upon their return to the palace that a little jungle girl has stowed away in their suitcase to present herself for adoption. The collage illustrations are a lively jumble, but the story is rambling and incoherent, lacking the folktale structure that made the first book about this pair so slyly effective. Molly's Family is a far more straight-forward address to the virtues of gay parenting. When kindergartner Molly draws a picture of her Mommy and her Mama Lu, classmate Tommy objects: ""That's not a family."" Crisis, small-scaled, ensues, as does a comforting chat with the mommies, and a word on ""all kinds of families"" from the teacher. While the story, illustrated with warm but generic colored-pencil drawings, is easier to follow than the sortie of the two kings, it's overly purposive and awfully bland. Does virtue have to taste that way? [Review covers these titles: King & King & Family and Molly's Family.] (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
In this disappointing follow-up to the wickedly fey King and King (2002), our newly married heroes honeymoon in the jungle and pick up a daughter. Both King Lee and King Bertie are charmed by the animal families they see gamboling along their path. " 'All those animals with their babies,' King Bertie sighed. 'I wish we had a little one of our own.' " But wait--even as he breathes these words, a little girl (who has been stalking them throughout) is busily stowing away in their luggage, to be adopted upon discovery. This offering misses the mark its predecessor so effectively hit; while the first story played effectively with the conventions of marriage-quest fairy tales, this is a purposive, obvious, and frustratingly illogical attempt, where the intent to address an issue crowds out any real delight that might be had. The mixed-media illustrations are as zany as ever, the jungle scenes featuring lush green backdrops against which families of every conceivable species present themselves (hippos, crocodiles, snakes, spiders, etc.), but unfortunately they cannot raise this piece of bibliotherapy to the level of literature. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
