Review by New York Times Review
Young children will delight in these sweetly charming summertime picture books. SMILEY'S DREAM BOOK Written and illustrated by Jeff Smith Smith's capacious imagination takes flight, literally, in this picture book starring the happy-go-lucky, slightly dim Smiley Bone from the iconic Bone graphic novel series. Smiley takes a walk in the woods, counting the birds he sees, and finds himself flying, too. There's a suspenseful turn, and a surprise ending when he wakes and realizes it was all a dream. If you plan to steer a child toward the Bone books later (and you should!), this is a terrific introduction to a world full of wonder and unexpected rewards. 32 pp. Scholastic. $17.99. (Ages 2 to 6) THE SANDCASTLE THAT LOLA BUILT By Megan Maynor. Illustrated by Kate Berube. The joys of a day at the beach - along with those inevitable moments of frustration, too - are packed into this story of a girl building a sandcastle. There's a "dude with a Frisbee" who at first steps right on it, then helps fix it. There's a little guy with a bulldozer and a girl from Minnesota who end up helping, too. There's the wave that wipes their masterpiece away, and then the sweet moment of realizing they've formed a spontaneous "we" and can start building again. Berube's delightful paintand-collage illustrations capture an easy, playful beach mood, with a hint of mystery in the ocean and sky. 32 pp. Alfred A. Knopf. $17.99. (Ages 2 to 6) DUDE! By Aaron Reynolds. Illustrated by Dan Santat. So much action and humor, so few words - just one, in fact (see the title), written in capitals or lowercase, in speech bubbles, or streeeeetched out. Expressed in the cheerfully bonkers illustrations by Santat, a Caldecott medalist, "Dude!" tells the story of a platypus and a beaver who go surfing together and meet a shark. A friendly one, it turns out, who wants to catch some waves with them: "Dude...?" he offers when they meet. More than half the fun, of course, is in reading this book out loud. Be ready for even the youngest kids to "read" it, too. 40 pp. Neal Porter/Roaring Brook. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 8) PIE IS FOR SHARING By Stephanie Parsley Ledyard. Illustrated by Jason Chin. A book about sharing doesn't sound like much fun, but this one takes all the sting out. Ledyard's spare text is a poetic ode to things that are easy to share (a ball, a climbing tree, a story, a hideout), with an acknowledgment of one that's hard (a best friend). Chin's sublime watercolor and gouache illustrations, a master class in visual storytelling, follow a group of family and friends on a daylong picnic near the beach. Once the sun starts setting it's clear this is the Fourth of July, adding even greater resonance - a nation is, after all, above all a shared idea. 40 pp. Neal Porter/Roaring Brook. $17.99. (Ages 2 to 6) 40 pp. Candlewick. $16.99. (Ages 3 to 7) GOLDFISH ON VACATION By Sally Lloyd-Jones. Illustrated by Leo Espinosa. Enjoying summer in the city requires ingenuity, as this entertaining tale - based on reallife events - shows. Three siblings glumly pass time in their hot Manhattan apartment until the broken fountain down the street gets cleaned up and a sign suddenly appears on it, inviting goldfish to take a vacation. A neighborhood hangout is born, as all the residents stop by to visit their fish. Espinosa's sunny illustrations are a visual party. The only downer, we learn in a note, is that once the fountain was fixed for good, the goldfish summer vacations ended. 40 pp. Schwartz & Wade/Random House. $16.99. (Ages 4 to 8) SUN Written and illustrated by Sam Usher "Rain" and "Snow" came first in this series of stories about a boy who's stuck at home with his grandpa in all kinds of weather. Now it's a scorching summer day, and as in the previous books, the delicately handled subtext is that it takes patience and imagination to navigate the generational divide and get through the long hours. The pair "gather their provisions" and go for a walk, which the boy pictures as crossing the desert. Then they stop at a pirate's cove, picnicking with a merry band of buccaneers. Usher's jaunty visual style is a mash-up of two British greats, Quentin Blake and John Burningham. SAFFRON ICE CREAM Written and illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh When a little girl named Rashin is on her way to the beach in Brooklyn for the first time, she remembers what it was like to go to the beach when her family lived in Iran, where the men's and women's sections were strictly separated (severe-looking burka-clad ladies patrol) and saffron ice cream was her favorite treat. With her colorful, exuberant folk-art illustrations and upbeat, friendly tone, Rashin makes a daunting cross-cultural leap seem as easy as a summer breeze. 40 pp. Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 8) THE GRAND EXPEDITION Written and illustrated by Emma Adbage There are those (like me) who feel that "camping out" in the backyard is a high point of childhood adventure, and this adorable book from Sweden confirms it. Two small siblings inform their dad of their plans, and after gathering their supplies they pitch a tent and hunker down. No, they don't make it through the whole night out there, but does that even matter? With winsome mixedmedia illustrations that capture all the most telling details, and a fine-tuned ear for the way kids think and talk, Adbage understands the fun that can be found in a child's everyday reality. 40 pp. Enchanted Lion. $16.95. (Ages 4 to 8) maria russo is the children's books editor of the Book Review.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [April 7, 2019]
Review by Booklist Review
In this Swedish import, two siblings pack their gear (a tent, cozy blankets, flashlight, a jump rope that could become a lasso, nature guidebook, and pickles) and hike out to the backyard for a grand expedition. They enjoy the day (finding squashed ants, nibbling on pickles, and singing nursery rhymes) until it gets dark. Then they run out of snacks, the mosquitoes come out, and the narrator needs to poop, so they saunter back inside, where Dad accepts their change of plans without comment and invites everyone to watch TV. Adbåge's comical line drawings, embellished with watercolor washes, result in cozy spreads that brim with small details. Readers will note that early in the story Dad claims to have only pickles in the house for expedition treats, yet cheese balls appear at TV time. Indoor and outdoor flora also figure prominently in the art, including a mystery leaf resembling a lily pad that the kids drag inside, and that also adorns the endpapers. Simple yet satisfying, proving ordinary can be quite grand.--Weisman, Kay Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Swedish author-illustrator Adbåge's cinematic ability to capture a household with its own idiosyncratic habits has the flavor of understated memoir. A girl in a striped pullover, with an impish grin, and her sister, Iben, prepare for a grand expedition. They set up a tent in the garden and pack flashlights, a toy knife, and quilts. They just need snacks, but Dad says there's nothing but pickles. In one of Adbåge's sly pencil-and-wash drawings, the pair tears the kitchen apart in search of other treats; the narrator holds a leaking box of rice, while Iben tosses utensils out from under the sink. They last in the tent as long as the pickles and songs hold out but then their resolve collapses: "We are sooo bored!... It's no good anymore." They move inside, and the narrator watches "a movie about crocodiles with fast music" with Dad, who reveals a secret stash of cheese puffs. The humor lies in the ironic mismatch between the girls' lofty aspirations and the way things actually work out ("I think I need to poop"). While Adbåge's affectionate family portrait feels particular to this quirky group, it relays a familiar truth of childhood: sometimes planning a novel activity is more fun than the activity itself. Ages 4-8. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Despite Dad's dearth of snacks (I mean, pickles?), a nameless big sibling and smaller Iben pack up and head out on a camping expedition in the backyard. A perfect campsite is located, tent is pitched, pickles are nibbled, songs are sung by flashlight, and all is gas and gaiters until Iben's sleeping bag turns uncomfy, one of the kids needs "to poop," and a hungry mosquito invades the tent. All ends quietly and happily with Iben in bed, one sibling cozily cuddled on the couch with Dad, and new expeditions on the horizon. Simple, color-washed illustrations accompany the equally simple, direct text, providing a perfectly warm record of a great (if brief) adventure. VERDICT A Swedish import that's ideal to be shared in a seasonal family storytime or as summer bedtime fare.-Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY © Copyright 2018. 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
Two towheaded children plan and embark upon a grand adventure--which turns out to be a truncated night in a tent in the backyard--in this charming Swedish import. The smaller of the siblings narrates the outing, which begins with supply requisition (flashlight, nature book, toy knives) and site prep, all of it happening under the bemused and not particularly watchful eye of the childrens father. Their time in the tent is grand indeed, until darkness sets in, accompanied by mosquitoes, sharp rocks between shoulder blades, and the need to poop. Plus, pickles arent an especially gratifying treat. So the children return to the living room, where their father is watching TV and eating cheese puffs, and find happiness. Mission accomplished. Adbges soft illustrations--clear, spare, pencil sketches in undefined planes, overlaid with loose washes of watercolor--?establish a gentle, slightly offbeat family scene, reinforced by little narrative details in the text such as a jump rope used as a lasso or a squashed ant in the pages of the nature book. This small adventure, with its amusingly ironic title, offers a satisfaction that is perfectly childlike and profound in its own way. thom barthelmess (c) Copyright 2018. 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
Two young siblings go on an adventure in their own backyard.In this Swedish import, two tiny tots decide one day to embark on a grand expedition. The children are never specifically gendered, with only one called by name--Iben (the other narrates). They gather the essentials: a tent, a flashlight, a cozy blanket, and a jump-rope (just in case they need a lasso, of course). They search the kitchen for treats but find none. Dad helpfully offers a jar of pickles, receiving frowns in response. They drag their supplies to a rock in the backyard and set up camp. Everything is great until they run out of pickles, mosquitoes start buzzing, Iben can't get comfortable on the hard ground, and the narrator needs to "poop." They shuffle back inside, confident in their decision. Dad (no other parent is mentioned throughout) doesn't ask questions but instead snuggles up on the couch and breaks out the cheese puffs. Adbåge's quirky line illustrations, with muted watercolor washes, set the tone for a grand--yet quite ordinary--adventure that many readers will find familiar. The children are drawn with pale skin and white, moplike pageboys.This ode to exploration encourages youngsters to think big; sometimes the most fun is in the preparation. (Picture book. 3-7)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
