Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"On a little hill, behind a brown fence, under a big oak tree, is... my house." Dubuc's English-language debut is an extended stream-of-consciousness journey, which winds through varied locales and past numerous animals, objects, and other creatures along the way. The book makes able use of suspenseful page-turns (and ellipses), as the text teases what's to follow ("In front of my house..."). Things start off simply, but Dubuc's sense of humor soon pops up: "Under my bed... Whew! Nothing at all." Accompanying the simple text, which feels as though it were dictated by a child's spur-of-the-moment whimsy, are similarly childlike drawings, set against white backgrounds (or black once the story moves inside a cave, past the Abominable Snowman, and into outer space). The story's unexpected detours are often delightful ("In the Big Bad Wolf's belly... the Three Little Pigs, the house made of bricks... a potful of stone soup, Grandmother and Little Red Riding Hood"). The accessibility of the concept and the artwork may prompt kids to choose their own adventures, so to speak. Ages 3-7. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-In an excursion that starts and ends with a little house on a hill, a child's imagination soars, moving from a rosebush and a bird outside to discover things "behind the window" and "in my room," including a book of fairy tales in which a dragon, a frog prince, and the Big Bad Wolf dwell, as well as the Abominable Snowman, a werewolf, a ghost, and a vampire. Finally, the adventure leads into outer space where sun and stars shine down on a calm ocean and then past zoo creatures and to the tiny house on the hill. While this small picture book is thick, the childlike text is brief-only two lines per spread-one introducing an item, the other prompting a page turn. Its size is perfect for one-on-one interaction, and youngsters will enjoy the twists and turns of the trip as they travel through the slightly scary land of fantastical creatures into surprising finds such as the child's teddy in Babette the Whale's belly or the tiny octopus head at the end of an "enormous tentacle." The illustrations, rendered in pencil crayon, are appropriately simple. They appear first on a white ground, then on black as the journey progresses into a cave and outer space, and then on white again for the return trip. This little gem has everything: text that will keep youngsters guessing as well as making up their own places to explore, and even an opportunity to make sense of those elusive prepositions. Don't miss this journey.-Marianne Saccardi, formerly at Norwalk Community College, CT (c) Copyright 2011. 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
This small, square-shaped book starts and ends at "my house." In between, the narrator takes an imaginative journey under the bed, into a book of fairy tales, and around the world. The spare, childlike pencil-crayon illustrations, eye-pleasing typeface, and clean page design invite readers to join in the voyage and guess what's coming next. (c) Copyright 2011. 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.
