Review by New York Times Review
A FAMILIAR PLACE, a pungent smell, the distant chatter of children's voices: You never know what might arouse a childhood memory, a moment of pure sensation as you recall hours of playful abandon. Four new picture books featuring children absorbed in creative worlds of their own making are likely to evoke such memories in their grown-up readers. Children lucky enough to encounter these books will not only enjoy them, they may even be inspired to find a slow day, roam through their imaginations and make something - the simplest of pleasures. "This Is My Dollhouse" is the story of two girls and two dollhouses. One of them, our narrator, is at first alone with her dollhouse, which she built herself, out of a cardboard box, along with all the things inside. Her dollhouse family is diverse: a bear, three dolls and a mouse. Through her evocative text and illustrations, the author-illustrator Giselle Potter ("The Year I Didn't Go to School," "Tell Me What to Dream About") invites the reader, too, to partake in making fried eggs, noodles, bandages, an elevator and a rooftop pool. Soon the narrator visits her friend, Sophie, who has a dollhouse too, but one that is manufactured, plastic and perfect. This dollhouse family is staid and expressionless. The two girls' playtime becomes scripted and stiff, and while the storyteller attempts inventiveness, Sophie is resistant. The narrator goes home, sadly thinking Sophie would never like her homemade dollhouse. So when Sophie visits later, she hides it. But Sophie finds it under the blankets, leading to an afternoon of imaginative play. Now it's Sophie who is sad when it's time to leave. "This Is My Dollhouse" celebrates the best of free play, capturing what it's like to be fully engaged and inspired. While Potter might have made the line between the two friends' styles of play seem less absolute, the charming illustrations have their own voice. Her ink and watercolor paintings are familiar and friendly, making it easy to slip into her world. This is Potter's distinguishing strength. She has even cleverly included illustrated instructions for dollhouse making on the inside of the book's dust jacket. This final detail mimics the scene when Sophie finds the storyteller's hidden dollhouse, allowing the child reader his or her own secret discovery. Brianne Farley's "Secret Tree Fort" follows two sisters, an older, serious one and a younger, frolicking one. The older reads a book as her sister tries to entice her to play: "I have a secret tree fort and you're not invited!" We see a rope ladder dangled hopefully out of the secret fort. When the older sister still declines, the spirited little sister embellishes the offer, with the text and illustrations building to show the fort with a water balloon launcher, a second floor with a trapdoor in the roof for stargazing and a basket for snacks and other emergencies. Soon there are monsters below, flags to fly, a lookout perch, a pirate ship, an underground tunnel, whales and a refrain: "Don't you wish you were invited?" At last, distracted from her book, the older sister looks up and says, in a grownup voice, "That doesn't exist." The little sister replies, "Fine! I made it up." As she sheds a tear, her older sister softens. "Maybe we just need to build it," she says. A collaboration begins as they draw plans for a tree fort together. Farley's illustrations consist of elements that vary stylistically: The sisters are painted in spare poses, the landscapes are fluid and the younger sister's imaginary world is rendered in childlike outlines of red, expanding in color and depth as the fantasy tree fort becomes more elaborate with each new description. Creating a world of one's own as a child is the beginning of our stories, Farley shows - and is sometimes made more vivid when shared with a sibling or friend. In "A Dark, Dark Cave" Eric Hoffman builds his story with a rhythmic, unbroken cadence: "The pale moon glows/as a cold wind blows /through a dark, dark cave." Bats and other scary features of the repeated "dark, dark cave" appear as the story builds to a "Roooaaaar!" It's only then that the reader discovers two children on an adventure inside a cave constructed of blankets. Dad appears, saying: "That's too loud, kids. Find a quiet game. The baby's sleeping." There is a moment of thoughtful consideration before the two children continue their play: "Two horses run/in the bright, bright sun/to a blanket barn,/wearing manes of yarn,/playing happily/in what used to be / a dark, dark cave." Corey R. Tabor's offbeat, expressive illustrations work wonderfully to support Hoffman's text. Tabor's palette begins with a deep, dark tonality as each child illuminates the way with a flashlight. When Dad opens the "dark, dark cave," the colors change. When the children become horses playing in the "bright, bright sun," the pages are suddenly filled with light and air. The book's second surprise is created through colors, as the reader finds the children are still inside the house - but in a sunny new world they've invented. The loosely rendered endpapers, featuring overlapping patterns of fabric in blue and white, suggest a trove of blankets that will tempt any child to build a cave of his or her very own. Jane Yolen's "What to Do With a Box," illustrated by Chris Sheban, is a book made of soft words and soothing visuals. Yolen and Sheban work in tandem: Rather than giving directions, Yolen's minimal text and Sheban's dreamlike illustrations only suggest how the book might be read, and where things might go from there. They give the reader inspiration without instruction, allowing for the endless possibilities of creating with a cardboard box. Sheban's use of cardboard as the surface for his paintings nods to the simplicity of the idea. His filmy illustrations in paint, watercolor and pencil show just how easily a box can transform into a library, palace, nook, car or boat - journeys to take, places to go. The final pages urge a child to begin the hunt for an empty box to work with: "A box! A box is a wonder indeed. The only such magic that you'll ever need." Books like these are wonders, too. LIZI BOYD is an author and illustrator of picture books including "Flashlight" and "Big Bear Little Chair." Her new book, "I Wrote You a Note," will be published next year.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [June 19, 2016]
Review by Booklist Review
Ready to explore? Bring a flashlight and join this eager girl and her somewhat reluctant younger brother as they venture into an unknown space. Rhyming couplets combine with the repeated phrase a dark, dark cave to build tension as the children venture past strange beasts. When a mysterious creature confronts the group, the action stops. The explorers are frozen, depicted as black cut-out images with wide, frightened eyes created by white chalk accents. A light shines suddenly and the cave is revealed to be a fort made of chairs and a quilt. As their dad enters the picture, the contents of their bedroom are playfully revealed to be the inspiration for their game. Careful observers also will see some additional items in the room that foreshadow the children's next adventure. Wonderfully expressive multimedia illustrations add depth and vitality to the suspenseful text. The children's body language and facial expressions artfully convey their emotions. Build your own fort in which to enjoy this imaginative portrayal of a sweet sibling adventure.--Whitehurst, Lucinda Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Readers will have an opportunity to assume their best spooky voices in this shivery story of brother-and-sister spelunkers. "Bats in flight/ disappear from sight/ in a dark, dark cave," writes Hoffman (Best Best Colors), as beams from the siblings' flashlights reveal glinting subterranean crystals and just-ominous-enough winged creatures. Just when the "dark, dark cave" refrains have built to a fever pitch and readers may begin to think that these kids have the least attentive parents ever, a scary figure looming at the cave's mouth turns out to be their father: "That's too loud, kids. Find a quiet game. The baby's sleeping." The cave, it turns out, is actually made from blankets and chairs-the bats were marionettes, while the "shining eyes" and "giant paws" that were so menacing belong to the family cat. Newcomer Tabor's mixed-media illustrations have a lively DIY spirit that mirrors the siblings' ingenuity. But there's nothing amateur about the repertoire of techniques he employs to convey a sense of the deep, dark unknown and his characters' (mostly) intrepid explorations. Ages 4-6. Illustrator's agent: Rebecca Sherman, Writers House. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-A boy, girl, and dog enter a cave with a flashlight. They see bats, stalactites, stalagmites, lizards, large yellow eyes, giant paws, and then a large, human shadow; they "Roooaaaar!" On the next spread, their father lifts the blanket of their "cave" and tells them to "find a quiet game. The baby's sleeping." The siblings devise a plan to pretend to be two horses running "to a blanket barn/wearing manes of yarn/playing happily/in what used to be/a dark, dark cave." The story relies on digitally assembled illustrations created with watercolor, pencil, and colored pencil, as the most text on any spread is 13 words, providing scant description. The dark cave scenes are appropriately abstract but may be difficult for younger readers to follow. The horse-riding scenes are bright, sunny, and detailed. Pretend play is more satisfyingly conveyed in Michael Rosen's We're Going on a Bear Hunt and David Axtell's We're Going on a Lion Hunt. Suggest Lemony Snicket's The Dark to readers who wish to shiver with expert pacing in text and atmospheric illustrations. VERDICT A serviceable addition for fans of imaginative play.-Laura Scott, Farmington Community Library, MI © Copyright 2016. 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
Who is down there in the dark, dark cave? Two white siblings use their imaginations to fearlessly investigate a mysterious cave in this gently suspenseful and lyrical tale. "The pale moon glows // as a cold wind blows / through a dark, dark cave." Digitally assembled watercolors show the two intrepid explorers bathed in the light of their flashlights as they journey through the cavern and provide plenty of details to get lost in. The poetic text has just the right amount of repetition and adds an atmosphere of mystery and fun. But wait! What's that approaching light? "That's too loud, kids. Find a quiet game. The baby's sleeping," says Dad prosaically, abruptly ending the spell. From under their homemade cave (complete with chairs and blanket), the siblings try to find another game to play. Can they do it? Of course they can! The surprise twist is a nice touch, and the gentle suspense and willing belief of the characters are charming and realistic. This joyful, timeless exploration of play is sure to be an inspirational spark to young readers, who will then embark on their own imaginary games. Readers young and old will find much to appreciate in this celebration of the imagination. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
