Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Raccoons morph from suburban menaces to cute critters on a mission, sauntering jauntily to the rhythm of Shaw's (Sheep in a Jeep) catchy verses. The masked band sets out on a moonlit "June night,/ Just-right-for-raccoon night" in search of a trashcan to topple and garbage to gobble. Thwarted by tight-fitting lids, they "crash cans,/ Mash and smash and bash cans," and strain to get at the yummy prize inside. In one standout spread, the three babies play one-sided tug-of-war with their mama's tail, helping her pull off a trash can's top. When the lid finally pops, the receptacle sails off down a hill, the raccoons in hot pursuit, and lands in a stream with a splash, scaring a bunch of bullfrogs off the page. But all is not lost: "Oh my whiskers!/ How delish!/ The can is full of flopping fish" and the family enjoys a trout dinner. Fine's (Piggie Pie!) painterly illustrations, in a lush nighttime palette of deep blues and greens, perfectly capture the mischief in the creatures' expressive faces (one baby raccoon even mimics the Home Alone star's famous gesture as the runaway can rolls downhill). Kids who fantasize about life after curfew will root for these determined creatures as they march to their own midnight music. Ages 3-7. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Short rhyming lines tell of a family of raccoons making a nocturnal raid on suburban garbage cans. They accidentally roll one into a stream and when they fish it out, it is filled with trout. Shaw's lively lines, all written from the animals' point of view, add to the humor of the simple story. Such phrases as "Ash cans./Trash cans./How we love to crash cans,/Mash and smash and bash cans" beg to be read aloud. Playful illustrations expand the lighthearted mood of the story. Fine's use of blues, greens, and light makes nighttime scenes almost as bright as the white of the raccoons' markings, and such objects as the metal trash cans shine with reflected moonlight. These exuberant creatures dance across the road toward their goal, team up to attack closed cans, and finally slump in sleepy satiation after feasting on fish. This story will combine well with Jim Arnosky's Raccoon on His Own (Putnam, 2001) and Jane Thayer's Clever Raccoon (Morrow, 1981; o.p.), or nocturnal nature adventures such as Jane Yolen's Owl Moon (Philomel, 1987).-Louise L. Sherman, formerly at Anna C. Scott School, Leonia, NJ (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
Moonlight, / June night, / Just-right-for-raccoon night. Indeed, it's the ideal time for a raccoon family to hunt for dinner. Unfortunately, the humans have closed the garbage-can lids too tightly, and the raccoons have a terrible time trying to open them. The taut rhyming text will prove fun to read aloud, and the blue-tinted images of the raccoon family foraging at night perfectly capture the mischievous mood. From HORN BOOK Fall 2003, (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
"Out we creep / While people sleep. / Soon we hope to find a heap / Of cheese and bread crumbs, / Piled deep / On codfish bones and beets." A parent raccoon and three youngsters head for some trashcans for their evening meal. One lid is stuck tight; getting that lid off sends the open can into a stream. When the raccoons finally retrieve it, it's full of trout. "How delish!" The syncopated rhyming text begs to be read aloud. Shaw has done for raccoons what she did for sheep in her classic series, slightly humanizing another fluffy species in a most entertaining manner. Fine's oil paintings in midnight blues and pale moonlight yellows are charming, mischievous, and dynamic, making these guys a hoot throughout. But the best scenes are the picture of one raccoon slapping his cheeks in Macaulay Culkin-like surprise as the trash can rolls away and the raccoon that's using fish heads as hand puppets. This is perfect from start to finish and impossible to read only once. (Picture book. 2-7) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
