Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"It all started on a Tuesday morning with a hat," begins Loffredo's English-language debut, a visually inviting fable of magic-tinged abundance. That's when the town fountain, a tiered affair topped by two impish water-spouting figures, begins performing absurd acts of generosity. The aforementioned chapeau is the first item to appear in the pool, and it's quickly followed by a plethora of gifts ranging from the utilitarian (yarn and gardening tools) to the inconvenient (mountains of bananas, tons of mismatched shoes), all rendered in a cheerful yellow. The bestowals cause as much chaos as delight, and they prompt villagers to discover hobbies and talents (ping-pong, stargazing) as well as chat daily around the objects' source. And when the fountain suddenly vanishes, they realize that the true reward is not material accumulation but the pleasure of regularly gathering together. Multiple gifts emerge throughout this quirky read: a freshly rendered cast (humans of various skin tones plus anthropomorphized animals, objects, and hybrids); satisfying echoes of "The Magic Porridge Pot," Tove Jansson's Finn Family Moomintroll, and Tomi Ungerer's The Hat; and droll text and linework that will fully immerse readers. Ages 3--8. (Apr.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3--This whimsical import invites readers into a delightfully quirky town where mysterious objects begin appearing in the public fountain. Some are tiny, others enormous, and no explanation is offered--only growing curiosity. The artwork is richly imaginative and packed with visual surprises. The story opens with an adventurer, who is part butterfly and part human, setting the tone for a cast of eccentric townsfolk: human characters, figures with animal heads, and even amorphous blue blobs with expressive faces. The detailed spreads reward multiple readings, with plenty of background humor to discover. When "experts" are summoned to investigate the fountain, one--who looks suspiciously like Santa--quips, "I know a lot about chimneys, but I'm no fountain expert." The ending carries the satisfying wonder of a modern folktale, reminiscent of works like David Wiesner's Flotsam, as the magic resurfaces in a new location. VERDICT A visually inventive treasure filled with charm and gentle humor; an engaging addition to picture book collections.--Heidi Dechief
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A cheeky fountain rebels against expectations in this colorfully whackadoodle tale, originally published in France. The fountain presents its first gift (a hat) to a passerby on a Tuesday morning. Soon thereafter, and without any sort of pattern, other items appear in its waters, including couches, drums, balloons, and rocking horses. Loffredo sets her story in a world built to defy expectations, so much so that even the town's citizens vary from ordinary-looking humans diverse in skin tone to sentient clouds with legs, reverse centaurs, people with wings and antennae, and more. As the fountain continues to give, the townspeople grow increasingly obsessed, staking out the fountain and forcing the mayor to regulate access to its presents. Then, on another Tuesday morning, the fountain disappears--but the community it helped to build remains. The freewheeling unpredictability of the narrative lends it both an air of mystery and a feeling that everything is all in good fun. Pages are suffused in the bright yellow of the fountain's gifts, alongside eye-popping pinks, greens, blues, oranges, and browns. While the mystery itself is never completely solved, multiple readings yield various interpretations, particularly if children inspect hidden details on many of its pages, like the expressions on the fountain's statues. Enigmatic yet utterly enticing--youngsters will have a ball.(Picture book. 3-6) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
