Review by New York Times Review
FROM "TESTING THE ICE" THE TRUE GIFT A Christmas Story. By Patricia MacLachlan. Illustrated by Brian Floca. Atheneum. $12.99. (Ages 7 and up) On their annual visit to their grandparents' farm, a brother and sister are saddened to see the obviously lonely White Cow on her own in a pasture. (MacLachlan, the Newbery Medalwinning author of "Sarah, Plain and Tall," neatly begins the story from the cow's point of view.) How the brother uses his Christmas money to find White Cow some friends, and how his sister, the narrator, feels about that, shapes the affecting and almost dreamlike happy ending. THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS Illustrated by Gennady Spirin. Marshall Cavendish. $16.99. (Ages 4 to 8) Along with the verses of this durable carol, a note provides background: though some believe the song holds "hidden Christian meanings" (with the partridge as Jesus), on the surface the growing list of fantastic items makes more sense as a children's memory game (another theory). Either way, Spirin's opulent illustrations perfectly suit the French hens, milking maids and golden rings. THE CHRISTMAS SWEATER By Glenn Beck. Illustrated by Brandon Dorman. Aladdin/Mercury Radio Arts. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 7) It's Christmas Eve and a boy is dreaming of a shiny new bicycle. Instead he's told he'll get a sweater knitted by his mother, and is crestfallen; but with his parents standing by, in the end he gets both the sweater and the bike. Strangely, this book is adapted from Beck's novel of the same name, in which a widow dies in a car accident and her son overcomes his bitterness with the help of just the sweater. Along the way, a message seems to have gotten mixed. TESTING THE ICE A True Story About Jackie Robinson. By Sharon Robinson. Illustrated by Kadir Nelson. Scholastic. $16.99. (Ages 7 to 10) Jackie Robinson's daughter builds a charming story around a childhood memory: the time her father stepped out on their frozen pond to test the ice for the first skating of the season. You see friends and family waiting anxiously, since they know he can't swim. (Nelson's close-ups expertly provide suspense as the ice goes "Boom!" - but holds.) With the basics of his biography efficiently woven in, this is a lovely introduction to a baseball legend. THE TEEN VOGUE HANDBOOK An Insider's Guide to Careers in Fashion. Razorbill. $24.95. (Ages 12 and up) This book isn't quite what you expect: it's not about modeling or makeup, but a how-to for teenagers who are genuinely interested in fashion and want to know how the business works. True, the profiles of people like Marc Jacobs are inherently glamorous, but the advice of the designers, editors and other insiders is refreshingly practical for the just-starting-out. Here's the photographer Mario Testino on the ideal assistant: "humble, funny and well mannered," putting "no limit" on how much he or she is willing to work. Real-world advice for would-be fashion stars in tough times. FROM "THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS" ALEX RIDER Crocodile Tears. By Anthony Horowitz. Philomel/Penguin. $17.99. (Ages 10 and up) Alex Rider's eighth adventure is one of his most ingenious, and if suitably over the top for MI6's sole teenage spy, it puts him in a world adults might recognize, with high-rolling bad guys and charities that turn out to be scams (the apt subtitle also foreshadows a terrific scary scene alongside an infested African river). The highlight is an escape from atop a gigantic dam as the wall is bursting and bullets and spears are flying. You'll have to read to find out how. JULIE JUST
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [December 20, 2009]
Review by Booklist Review
Jackie Robinson's bravery extended well beyond the world of baseball, as demonstrated in this heartwarming family story by his daughter, Sharon. At their lakeside home in Stamford, Connecticut, Jackie never joins his children in their aquatic activities. Sharon eventually realizes her father can't swim, but it takes a frozen-over lake and Jackie's brave testing of the ice for Sharon to fully appreciate the courage that defined her father's life. A brief author's note gives details about Jackie's contribution to integration in baseball. Nelson's sumptuous illustrations, with larger-than-life figures and beautiful landscapes filling the double-page spreads, are perfectly suited to the text. The baseball scenes are clearly on par with those in Nelson's highly praised We Are the Ship (2008), and the spreads with the children interacting with Jackie have a Norman Rockwell-like quality. Pair with Teammates, by Peter Golenbock (1990), about Jackie Robinson's bravery on the playing field.--Enos, Randall Copyright 2009 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The daughter of the baseball legend recalls the moment when she fully understood the courage it took for her father to break baseball's color barrier. Jackie Robinson never learned to swim and refuses to join his kids in the lake that fronts their Connecticut estate. But when winter comes and everyone wants to go skating, Robinson overcomes his fear to test the ice for his children. "We waited for what seemed like forever," recalls the author (Slam Dunk!), describing how the ice moans and heaves as her father taps it with a broomstick to determine its thickness. "That was Jackie Robinson. And that was my dad. Big, heavy, out there alone on the lake, testing the ice to be sure it would be safe for us." Nelson (Henry's Freedom Box), a Caldecott Honor artist, contributes sumptuous, cinematic paintings that immerse readers in every scene, whether it's an eye-to-eye meeting with Dodgers general manager Branch Rickey or an idyllic summer afternoon at the family home. Readers will close the book understanding that there are many ways to be hero-and Robinson had all the bases covered. Ages 7-10. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-Although Robinson couldn't swim, his daughter affectionately recounts how he bravely tested the ice near the family's Connecticut home so that his children and their friends could play on the frozen lake. Nelson's expressive illustrations rendered in pencil, watercolor, and oils add to the richness of the story. (c) Copyright 2013. 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 Kirkus Book Review
In 1955 Jackie Robinson and the Brooklyn Dodgers beat out the Yankees and the Robinson family left New York City for a secluded home in Connecticut. Sharon Robinson's remembrance of this time includes a concise description of how her father became the first African American to play in the major leagues, accompanied by sepia-toned illustrations. This recollection's Connecticut scenes are painted in lush seasonal colors, as swimming and boating are favorite pastimes at their new home, although Jackie always sticks to the shore. The first winter in Connecticut offers a new entertainment: ice skating. Sharon, her siblings and their friends beg Jackie to take them on the ice. As the legendary ballplayer tentatively makes his way onto the frozen lake Sharon has a dramatic realizationher father can't swim. Nelson uses varied perspectives to create tension and then resolution as Robinson signals the all-clear. This fond daughter's reminiscence is a welcome addition to the life story of one of America's best-known athletes and civil-rights advocates. (Picture book/memoir. 7-10) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
