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
Vacations are great for everyone even goldfish. Three siblings and their three pet goldfish settle in for a boring summer in the city. Then, something exciting: they learn that the old, broken-down fountain on the end of their block is being restored, and it needs goldfish for the summer. The kids can't wait to send their fish on a vacation and they aren't the only ones. The simply named central children (H, Little O, and Baby Em) and their commanding goldfish (Barracuda, Fiss, and Patch) dominate Espinosa's bright pages, active even while they wait. When joyful crowds gather at the fountain with their fish, each child expresses unique excitement and body movements. In giving their goldfish a vacation, the siblings find an adventure of their own: visits to the fountain result in lots of interaction with others. Based on true events in New York City, this would pair well with Ted Staunton's Harry and Clare's Amazing Staycation (2017).--Ching, Edie Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Lloyd-Jones (His Royal Highness, King Baby) takes inspiration from the charming true story of a New York City fountain that became a summer "retreat" for goldfish for more than a decade. After three children find a sign on a derelict fountain-"Coming in Two Weeks! Calling All Goldfish Looking for a Summer Home"-they run home to share the news with their grandfather and three fish. When the day finally arrives, the once-forlorn fountain has been transformed into a locus for neighborhood children who while away the summer playing and listening to Grandpa's yarns of times past. Anxious readers may wonder how the kids will reclaim their own fish, and at summer's end the children remark how different their pets look. "Of course!" says Grandpa. "That's what a vacation will do for you!" Nostalgia infuses Lloyd-Jones's tale of childhood summer innocence and Espinosa's retro digital illustrations. His New York City, with its diverse community of residents set against a graphic cityscape, recalls the work of M. Sasek. A closing note details the fountain's real-life history. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Elizabeth Harding, Curtis Brown. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-This satisfying tale, based on true events, is about three children, three goldfish, and their summer adventures. An unused fountain in New York City, which had been neglected for many years, is suddenly cleared of garbage and spruced up. One June day, the children see a posted sign: "Coming in Two Weeks! Calling All Goldfish Looking for a Summer Home." The fountain is now ready to offer goldfish, donated temporarily by neighborhood children, a chance to enjoy a vacation, to mingle with their own kind, and swim outside the confines of a fish bowl. The three youngsters-H., Little O, and Baby Em-with assistance from a volunteer overseeing the project, deposit their fish-Barracuda, Patch, and Fiss-in the fountain as do other "goldfish parents." What had been an area eyesore becomes a place for neighbors to gather and children to play while visiting their pets. The illustrations, done in pencil and Adobe Photoshop, have a clean, uncluttered appeal with plenty of white space as background. VERDICT This cheerful and charming tale is a great selection for one-on-one sharing and for vacation-themed storytime.-Maryann H. Owen, Oak Creek Public Library WI © 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
Three city-dwelling siblings, goldfish owners, feel sad for the derelict, once-magnificent fountain at the end of their street. Then a sign appears on the fountain: COMING IN TWO WEEKS! CALLING ALL GOLDFISH LOOKING FOR A SUMMER HOME. Day by day, the children and their grandfather watch as a park worker cleans up the fountain, turning it back into something beautiful and functional. When it is ready, the children, along with others in the community, bring their goldfish and plop them in. Lloyd-Joness straightforward telling of this amiable story is amplified by Espinosas bright illustrations, which bring a sense of joy to every page. Both text and art hew to the young protagonists perspective as they look out their window at the fountain, listen to Grandpa tell stories, and finally join neighbors of all ages and races to bring their goldfish outside for their summer vacation. Of particular delight is the double-page spread that appears at this point in the narrative, showing the gleeful goldfish in their new environment. In an authors note, Lloyd-Jones tells of the true event that inspired the story. monica edinger (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
Where do fish go during vacations?It seems as though it's going to be an ordinary summer for three white children (named H, Little O, and Baby Em), their grandfather, and their goldfish (named Barracuda, Patch, and Fiss)until a sign appears outside an abandoned nearby fountain that changes everything. "COMING IN TWO WEEKS! CALLING ALL GOLDFISH LOOKING FOR A SUMMER HOME," it says. Soon a man comes to clean and landscape the fountain, and not long after that, it's time for the neighborhood children to drop off their fishy charges! Clear, jovial text and appealing, retro-styled illustrations rendered in pencil and Photoshop portray a diverse New York neighborhood full of youngsters, many of whom spend a summer eagerly visiting their pets and listening to Grandpa's stories of summers past. Before the kids know, it, summer has ended, and it's time to find their fish (Are they sure they have the right ones? Grandpa seems to know), and the adventure is over until next year. "Anyway, who says you have to leave the city to have a vacation?" asks Grandpa. An author's note reveals that for 13 years many of New York City's goldfish actually went on vacation in Hamilton Fountain before its 2009 restoration.A charming, gently humorous, accessible story based on a real-life occurrence that's sure to capture the imaginations of young readers and listeners alike. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
