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32 pp.
| Penguin/Minedition
| June, 2007
|
TradeISBN 978-0-698-40059-7$16.99
(3)
K-3
Translated by Charise Myngheer.
Illustrated by
Jean-Pierre Corderoch.
For his birthday, a boy receives flower seeds from his uncle then secretly scatters them around town. By story's end, the "flower magician" is unmasked. The premise is derivative of Barbara Cooney's Miss Rumphius, but this European import adds a dose of botany and school life to the story. Cheerful paintings that illustrate the boy's quaint town complement the upbeat tale.
32 pp.
| Penguin/Minedition
| October, 2006
|
TradeISBN 0-698-40047-X$16.99
(4)
K-3
Translated by Charise Myngheer.
Illustrated by
Alexandra Junge.
Tired of his young owner's messy, smelly room, Carlos the cat sets out to find a better home. He ends up in a tidy apartment with a luxurious bed, warm milk, and expensive treats. But the good life gets old, and Carlos starts to miss his former owner. The textured, painterly illustrations add humor to this somewhat preachy story.
32 pp.
| Penguin/Minedition
| January, 2005
|
TradeISBN 0-698-40008-9$14.99
(3)
K-3
Translated by Charise Myngheer.
Nancy, a little gosling, does not want to learn to swim and is constantly distracted from her lessons by her interest in elusive butterflies. Finally she invents a form of lily-pad surfing that allows her a close-up view. The predictable story is sweet, and the watercolor and pencil illustrations are lush and engaging.
109 pp.
| Penguin/Minedition
| September, 2004
|
TradeISBN 0-698-40005-4$18.99
(3)
K-3
Translated by Charise Myngheer.
When an angel arrives on Earth to search for the best Christmas gift, he and a rabbit exchange twenty-four stories about Christmas and generosity. Fourteen artists illustrate familiar and lesser-known tales including "Anna's Wish," "The Gingerbread Man," and "Silent Night." The collection hangs together well and expresses the values of the Advent season without sacrificing strong storytelling.
32 pp.
| Penguin/Minedition
| October, 2004
|
TradeISBN 0-698-40003-8$14.99
(4)
PS
Translated by Charise Myngheer.
Illustrated by
Birte Muller.
A little girl who wonders what her teddy bear does while she's at school stays home and tries everything from pretending to be asleep to tempting him with honey to catch him at his games. Though the illustrations, punctuated with bold blocks of color, support the playfulness of this theme, the text, told in verse, is interrupted by awkward refrains between many of the stanzas.
32 pp.
| Penguin/Minedition
| September, 2004
|
TradeISBN 0-698-40004-6$14.99
(4)
K-3
Translated by Charise Myngheer.
Quarreling over who has more cookies, two fox siblings reconsider their behavior when they encounter two mice happily sharing their one and only kernel of corn, who explain, "if one of us starved, we wouldn't have anybody to play with." The bickering siblings, ably portrayed in the illustrations, will be familiar to many readers, but the didactic text is confusing.
32 pp.
| Penguin/Minedition
| October, 2004
|
TradeISBN 0-698-40006-2$14.99
(4)
PS
Translated by Charise Myngheer.
Illustrated by
Eve Tharlet.
Some animals overcome their reservations about caring for two abandoned frogs when Mama Mouse pronounces, "It's simple. A child is a child." The message is spot-on, but readers may fixate on the abandonment aspect ("The two little frogs waited and waited, but Mama and Daddy Frog never came home") rather than the rescue. The textured, up-close-and-personal images are occasionally heartbreaking.