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Ernst, Lisa Campbell
12 Reviews
(4)
4-6
The randomness of the subjects, from dogs to toilets, socks to bananas, is both appealing and frustrating. Lighthearted but accurate information includes a simple definition, labeled parts, and other related, sometimes whimsical, facts (a cat is defined, but a kaleidoscope isn't). Collage illustrations on a grid background give a technical air to the information in this companion to How Things Work in the Yard.
Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian
(3)
K-3
In her second adventure, no sooner does the Gingerbread Girl greet her new animal cracker friends than they're "off to explore!" Catchy rhyme introduces each character as the story progresses toward its climax: the crackers run into a fox. Luckily, the Gingerbread Girl comes to their rescue, bringing a happy ending to the tale. Gingham backgrounds tone down the pictures of stampeding cookies.
Reviewer: Sophie Williamson
(4)
K-3
Ernst supplies very brief explanations of how various backyard items "work"; she also incorporates some humor (e.g., in the section titled "How Does a Ball Work?" we're reminded that cheese balls aren't for kicking). The conceit is better suited to some of the subjects (sprinkler, dandelion, wagon wheel) than to others (bird, rock). Cut-paper illustrations are cleanly composed and eye pleasing.
Reviewer: Pearl Higgins
(3)
K-3
To earn her Good-Deed Badge, Pig Scout Sylvia Jean decides to take care of an elderly neighbor who sprained her ankle. Sylvia Jean's help, however, is far too enthusiastic for the frail Mrs. VanHooven, and she is banned from visiting. Sylvia Jean's ingenuity (she continues to visit--incognito), a surprise ending, and cheerful illustrations make for a satisfying read.
Reviewer: Patricia Riley
(3)
PS
"I'm thinking of something that is...round like a ball," says an offstage narrator. As each family member hazards a guess, more clues are added. Die-cut circles grow larger as readers get closer to the answer: the Earth, which is shown on a large foldout page. Beautifully textured backgrounds in different hues play well against the story's sense of motion.
Reviewer: Amy Kellman
(2)
PS
The lonely couple who lost their Gingerbread Boy to the wily fox tries again, this time fashioning a girl. And off she goes, her red licorice hair ablaze on the oversize pages, chanting a variant of her brother's mantra. While Ernst's happy ending may be too sweet for tradition to bear, this Gingerbread Girl, to quote the fox, is one cute cookie.
Reviewer: Susan P. Bloom
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
November, 2006
(2)
PS
"The House That Jack Built" gets taken for a new spin in the family van. From the moment Dad ushers his three children into the newly sparkling-clean vehicle, young audiences will guess what's coming. Following a stop at the fast-food window, French fries and condiments fly. Cartoon pictures show the children's delight in the tornado of treats, as Dad drives blissfully unaware.
Reviewer: Lauren Adams
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2005
(2)
K-3
In this bold, graphic alphabet, an exercise in visual imagination, each broad, sans-serif letter fills a square of a dissonant hue, which in turn is broadly bordered in black. One sentence, printed to be read from around the letter's four sides, invites readers to rotate the book and decode suggested interpretations: "S becomes / a snipped curl, / a circular slide, / a caterpillar." Handsome and intriguing.
Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
July, 2004
(3)
PS
When spring arrives one morning, the sun alerts the earth, "Wake up, old friend, it's Spring!" The earth wakes an earthworm, who wakes a seed, and so on, until the news reaches a human family, and everyone runs outside to celebrate. In this unfailingly jovial story, illustrations in soft spring colors offer nice close-up views of the awakening animals.
Reviewer: Martha Sibert
(2)
K-3
City girl Hannah Mae is a cowgirl through and through. She practices roping skills on her stuffed animals and cow care and herding on hamsters. Finally, she and her pony, Sassafras, get to visit dear old Uncle Coot out West--where her hamster-herding abilities are just what's needed. A rootin'-tootin' picture book, with pastel-ink and pencil pictures in soft, sandy colors, about living out your dream even when it seems downright ridiculous.
Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
July, 2003
(3)
K-3
Goldilocks--now the proprietor of Goldi's Locks and Keys--revisits the three bears fifty years later, determined to atone for her bad behavior. Unfortunately, her attempts at reparation make this visit nearly as traumatic for the poor bears as the last one. The spirited illustrations, featuring a stout, bespectacled Goldi, enhance the humor of this clever sequel to the familiar tale.
Reviewer: Martha Sibert
(4)
K-3
Stella Louella, her family, and friends search the neighborhood for her missing library book. A cumulative tale, the story gains momentum as a letter carrier, police officer, athlete, and others join the hunt, sharing their own favorite parts of the lost book. Pen-and-ink and pastel illustrations accelerate the somewhat contrived and overlong story, but librarians will welcome this take on overdue books.
Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty
12 reviews
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