The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Snicket, Lemony

29 Myths on the Swinster Pharmacy

32 pp. | McSweeney's McMullens | February, 2014 | Trade ISBN 978-1-938073-78-6 $14.95

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Lisa Brown. Siblings investigate the Swinster Pharmacy: is it a run-of-the-mill shop that sells "aspirin and toothpaste," as a police officer asserts? Or, is it something more sinister? Snicket nails the intensity of a child's curiosity, but the book (twenty-nine observations ranging from quirky to lyrical to matter-of-fact) ultimately--and perhaps intentionally--leaves readers in the dark. Brown's illustrations are just right: gloomy and eerie.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger