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Brown, Calef
10 Reviews
(2)
K-3
Brown (Soup for Breakfast; Hypnotize a Tiger) presents poems categorized by subject, e.g., "People Are People"; "Foodstuffs"; and "Sleepy Time." Brown's poetry here is mostly free-flowing, though still full of clever rhymes and wordplay. His signature color-saturated acrylic-and-gouache paintings are as absurd as ever, but with the added realistic element of a diverse human cast. A collection that sends the message that language is there for creative play.
Reviewer: Shoshana Flax
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
November, 2019
(2)
K-3
Brown gives his characteristically quirky, funny verse and acrylic and gouache art a spooky twist in this collection. The seventeen poems celebrate ghosts, witches, demons, and even fondue-eating cannibals. Each leaves room for kids to wonder what they might see on a "ghostly carousel" of their own creation--an imaginative exercise perfect for the Halloween season.
Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
September, 2018
(2)
4-6
Brown takes several conventions--such as celebration of the outlier and weird animals--and gives them fresh energy. A Greek chorus much given to puns is located along the bottom margin, where creatures comment on the poems and add their own. Brown is a superb craftsman, with jazzy rhythms and a gift for embedded rhymes. Jolie laide drawings add to the joyous mood.
Reviewer: Sarah Ellis
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2015
(3)
K-3
"We go together / like fingers and thumbs. / Basses and drums. / Pastries and crumbs." Eighteen quirky, well-metered poems work together smashingly in this warmhearted small-trimmed book honoring the support and camaraderie of "genuine chums." The poems range from simple odes to silly nonsense verse, though all employ clever wordplay; the acrylic illustrations consistently embody the spirit of each one.
Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen
(2)
K-3
Whether you need rags or pantaloons, spinnakers or planks, you can be sure to find them at Pirateria. In this book-length advertisement for an imaginary pirate emporium, nonsense is the order of the day, with silly wordplay ("at Pirateria we put the 'arg' in 'bargain'!") and amusing rhymes. Brown's distinctive acrylics, in shades of greens and blues, play well with the characters.
Reviewer: Robin L. Smith
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
September, 2012
(3)
K-3
"Do taffy pullers ever push and make a glob of sticky mush?" A boy addresses his rapidly unspooling mental list of questions to the reader. The rhymes are sometimes unabashedly silly; at other times they inspire thought. The acrylics, which feature text that changes font, size, and arc, are artfully jam-packed, like the narrator's mind.
Reviewer: Nell Beram
(3)
K-3
Brown presents a series of cleverly constructed--and masterfully incongruous--rhymes and wordplay. Ants gather debris for the title arboreal celebration; the Oompachupa Loompacabra lures goats with chocolate bars; and the Portrait of Gory René turns shamefully handsome. Autumnal tones and geometric creatures in the acrylic illustrations enhance the humor.
Reviewer: Shoshana Flax
(2)
K-3
In this collection of fourteen poems, Brown demonstrates his inventiveness, whether pondering painting on toast ("Blueberry jam / makes a beautiful sky") or the tendency of cats to lie perfectly flat in hot weather. Several pieces are amusing, while others inspire without preachiness, sparking a creative response in readers. Acrylic paintings fill each page to the edges, offering much to pore over.
Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2009
(3)
K-3
A blue-faced gentleman sporting the nose of an elephant leads a tour of Tippintown, a place where banana asparagus stew is served for lunch and gargoyles roam parks. An easy, engaging lilt characterizes the rhyming verse. Rendered in a flat perspective, the quirky illustrations recall the hip work of Maira Kalman. A bit derivative? Sure, but kids who love the eccentric will surely appreciate this zany outing.
Reviewer: Carolyn Shute
(3)
K-3
The follow-up to Polkabats and Octopus Slacks features another exuberant set of eccentrics: "Olf" the carrot-brandishing pirate has a rabbit sidekick instead of a parrot; "Sir Dance-a-Lot" is an armor-plated charmer; and Grandma loves jamming on her "Magic Electric Guitar." Paintings reminiscent of Maira Kalman's art suit the hip silliness of the verse. This should please even kids who claim not to like poetry.
Reviewer: Carolyn Shute
10 reviews
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