Review by New York Times Review
BINK is cheerful, fearless and messy. Gollie is skinny, precise and superior. Bink is heart and Gollie is head. Of such contrasts is the best-friend relationship forged. In this three-chapter picture book, written in dialogue, Gollie seems to call the shots - at first. She's taller. She's worked on her vocabulary: "Here I am where none but a few have ventured. What an extraordinary accomplishment." She makes pronouncements: "I must inform you that you are giving a home to a truly unremarkable fish." Bink doesn't challenge or confront Gollie. Only once does she contradict her: "Fred wants to roller-skate," said Bink. "Fred longs for speed." "Fish know nothing of longing," said Gollie. "Some fish do," said Bink. "Some fish long." Readers begin to notice, however, that in her vague way Bink gets exactly what she wants in each episode, whether it's garish socks or acceptance of Fred the fish. Who's the smart one after all? Who's the confident one? As is true in every relationship, all is not what it seems. The episodes are self-contained but build in intensity, culminating in the near death and daring rescue of Fred and in a new honesty between the friends. The conversations in "Bink and Gollie," written by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee, provide the illustrator, Tony Fucile, with the foundations of a world he fleshes out to create a place both oddly particular and warmly familiar. Gollie's tidily cuffed pants and matching jacket - of course. Bink's wild hair, almost a character in itself - obviously. Best of all are their houses. Gollie lives in a Bauhaus-inspired home-for-one at the top of a large tree. It is all large abstract canvases, modern chairs and tall, cold, tinkling drinks. Bink lives in a cottage at the foot of the tree, furnished with rustic wooden table and chairs, surrounded by a vegetable garden and well-supplied with 22 jars of peanut butter. Against this rich background (the girls live by themselves? Oh, happiness! Move over Pippi Longstocking) Fucile creates, in black and white with strategic splashes of color, cartoons in which the emotion is clear and vibrant. There's no need for telling when Fucile is there to show; you'll detect a whiff of "Dennis the Menace" in the multiframe action spreads and another of the "Nancy" comics in the book's fond depiction of stuff. (The shelves of "Eccles Empire of Enchantment" repay perusing.) Bink and Gollie are welcome human newcomers in a world of easy readers largely populated by animals. They join the ranks of George and Martha, Frog and Toad, Zelda and Ivy and all the other resilient pairs that celebrate the challenges and strengths of a great friendship. Sarah Ellis lives in Vancouver and teaches at the Vermont College of Fine Arts.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [November 14, 2010]
Review by Booklist Review
From two high-profile authors and an award-winning illustrator comes this zany hybrid of picture book, graphic novel, and early reader that introduces an endearing new pair of odd-couple friends. Short, blond, sprout-haired Bink and tall, tidy Gollie are complete opposites, but they're also devoted pals who visit each other every day: Bink from her tiny rustic cottage; Gollie from her sleek, chic tree house filled with mid-twentieth-century furniture. Three episodes explore common friendship dilemmas: in the first, the girls discuss the meaning of compromise; next, Gollie longs for personal space; and finally, Bink's new pet sparks Gollie's jealousy. Reality is gleefully suspended here; parents and school don't seem to exist. Although the scenes don't quite combine into a developed story, the repetition of phrases and appealingly oddball elements (roller skates, pancakes, rainbow socks) create a sense of cohesion, while Fucile's expressive, cartoon-style drawings, including several wordless spreads, extend the sense of character, story, and madcap adventure. Children will have fun filling in all the spaces this high-spirited, quirky, and warmhearted offering leaves to the imagination.--Engberg, Gillian Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Think Pippi Longstocking meets The Big Bang Theory, and you'll have a good idea of the mood and quirky heroines of this first entry in what promises to be a wholly original chapter book series. Gollie is reed thin, geeky, and archly judgmental; Bink is petite and down to earth. Like all best friends, they know each other too well and can't live without one another, and in three short adventures, they squabble about novelty socks ("The problem with Gollie," Bink observes, "is that it's either Gollie's way or the highway. My socks and I have chosen the highway"), personal boundaries, and pets ("I must inform you that you are giving a home to a truly unremarkable fish," says Gollie). The plots serve mostly as a framework for DiCamillo and McGhee's sharp, distinctly ungirly dialogue that makes every page feel like a breath of fresh air. And true to his background as an animator for Pixar and Disney, Fucile makes his inklike digital illustrations crackle with energy and sly humor-it's not surprising that the man who helped create The Incredibles' Edna Mode has made these two prickly personalities irresistible. Ages 6-9. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-In three humorous interconnected stories, Gollie, a self-confident girl who lives in a fashionable, contemporary house, and Bink, her rumpled but lovable, impish friend, are adventure-seeking companions, each with her own strong will. In the first tale, Bink's outrageous socks offend Gollie's sartorial eye, but the two compromise for friendship's sake. The second story sends Gollie on an imagined climb up the Andes, shutting Bink out of the house until she arrives at the door with a sandwich, which they share on top of the "mountain." In the final episode, Gollie is jealous of Bink's new pet fish until Bink reassures her that no one can take her place. All three stories, written with short sentences, abundant dialogue, and some contemporary expressions, offer delightful portrayals of two headstrong characters who, despite their differences and idiosyncratic quirks, know the importance of true friendship. The delightful digitalized cartoon illustrations-mostly black and white, with color used for the two characters and in strategic splashes throughout-reinforce the humor of the text. Filled with movement, they successfully portray the protagonists' changing moods. Elementary listeners and readers will have no trouble relating to the two friends' antics and the bond they share.-Nancy Menaldi-Scanlan, The Naples Players, FL (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
Three short stories star Bink, a petite and excitable dervish with wide eyes and yellow sticky-out hair, and Gollie, Bink's lanky, unflappable, erudite best friend. They live in separate apartments of a funky two-family treehouse: Bink in a gingerbread-style dwelling at the foot of the tree and Gollie in a mod-inspired pad at the tippy top. The pals agree about many things -- roller-skating, pancakes -- but there's also some real friction. In 'Don't You Need a New Pair of Socks?' Gollie disapproves mightily of Bink's rainbow-colored socks. 'You remove your outrageous socks, and I will make pancakes,' says Gollie, suggesting a compromise that isn't really one. Bink storms off, fuming, 'The problem with Gollie. . .is that it's either Gollie's way or the highway.' By the end of the story the girls have found a true compromise, but there are more difficulties to work through in 'P.S. I'll Be Back Soon' and 'Give a Fish a Home.' DiCamillo and McGhee are entirely successful in portraying the bumps in the road and bruised feelings that can come with friendship. The rewards, though, are also apparent, as the two besties snuggle together against the elements (that exist only in Gollie's imagination) and finally find some mutually acceptable uses for Bink's eye-offending footwear. Fucile's unfussy digital illustrations with lots of white space perfectly highlight this odd couple's particularities. ELISSA GERSHOWITZ (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.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Mysteries of the Deep Blue Sea... seated next to a mortified Gollie. More, please! (Early reader. 6-8)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
