Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 4-In this beautifully presented text, McGehee brings to life the true story of Rockwell "Rocky" Kent III's adventures with his father, Rockwell Kent II, as they spent seven months on a remote island off Seward, AK, during the winter of 1918. Nine-year-old Rocky begs his mother to let him accompany his father on a painting expedition, which finds them living with Lars Olsen, an old trapper, and Olsen's family of angora goats. McGehee's meticulous scratchboard illustrations pair with Rocky's first-person narrative to foster a tone of wonder and discovery, as driftwood becomes a lookout on the beach and whale fin sightings become pirate ships. The love between father and son is woven throughout the text in the images of Robinson Crusoe read-alouds and joint snow baths in powdery piles outside their cabin. This is a clearly formed tale of father-son adventure that has a nostalgic feel. VERDICT A tale to treasure again and again as either a storytime read-aloud or an independent read.-Colleen S. Banick, Westport Public Schools, CT © Copyright 2015. 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 picture book, inspired by a memoir by Rockwell Kent III, concerns nine months in 1918 that he and his father spent on Fox Island off the coast of Alaska with a single frontiersman for a neighbor. The spare, evocative narrative reveals Rocky's adventurous pleasures as well as occasional fears. Attractive colored woodcuts, appropriately styled like Rocky's father's art (painter Rockwell Kent), illustrate the story. (c) Copyright 2015. 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
"When I was nine years old, I lived one winter on Fox Island, with my father, an old trapper named Olson, six blue fox, a family of angora goats, and Squirlie. This is what happened."So begins an imaginary memoir, based on the records of Rockwell Kent III and his artist father. Artwork reminiscent of Mary Azarian's graces pages that begin with the son noting that his father wanted to go to Alaska to paint. "We pleaded with Mother until she said yes. Squirlie came too." In September 1918, father, son and toy squirrel travel by train, steamship and rowboat to get to the remote island, where they renovate an old shed. Now the outdoor adventures begin. Three well-calculated pairs of suspenseful rectos followed by a harmless, concluding page turn keep readers riveted while meting out facts. As the boy heads down a trail, he hears noises that he knows could be a grizzly bear. The page turn reveals a beautiful black-inked portrait of a porcupine. The woodcuts capture the joys of playing in the snow, the warmth of stories by lamplight, occasional loneliness and the hazards of a storm at sea. Readers may be forgiven for thinking that Rocky is a girl before they reach the author's note, as he looks androgynous in the illustrations. A taste of wilderness of yore to whet the appetites of future fans of Laura Ingalls Wilder, Louise Erdrich and Kirkpatrick Hill. (author's note) (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
