(1) PS A robin--with help from friends--builds a nest, shown through vibrant, detailed collage art that mirrors the bird's methods and described in jaunty cumulative verse that pays homage to "The House That Jack Built." A dog supplies string, horse provides straw, pig mixes mud, etc.; then the robin constructs a perfect nest to house three eggs, which hatch. It's a lively story to share individually or with groups.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2018

(3) PS When Michael's mother tells him to get dressed, his dog Maggie helps him pick out clothes--by modeling them. The playful, straightforward plot emphasizes dressing oneself correctly and reinforces color recognition (while most of the text is in large black font, color names are the color they describe). Fleming's signature pulp-painted illustrations are so expressive Michael's laughter seems to emanate from the page.

Reviewer: Lana Barnes

(2) PS Listeners familiar with the nursery rhyme know the plot line: every day ducks go out; every day the returning group shrinks by one. But the particulars--highlighted in glorious pulp-painted illustrations and chock-full of opportunities for participation--create a multilayered adventure. The book is filled with the wonder of the natural world alongside practical information such as counting and days of the week; animal picture glossary appended.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2017

(3) PS Sixteen labeled shapes (circles, arcs, rectangles, etc.) wait on the left-hand page while a mouse directs them to join him, one by one, on the right. As the shapes bounce, roll, and slither to the right, they form an animal, eventually recognizable as a monkey. Fleming's cut-paper collage and highly saturated colors steal the show from the rhyming text.

Reviewer: Lolly Robinson

(2) PS In a spare, rhyming text, Fleming invites youngsters to observe underground creatures, large and small, as well as their tunnels, burrows, food sources, and activities. Fleming's pulp-painting collage illustrations are rich with texture and color: soft green leaves, fuzzy white roots, and grainy brown soil. The pages hum with life and activity. Mammals, plants, insects, and rodents are all featured.

Reviewer: Ashley Waring | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2012

(2) PS A friendly teacher addresses her students: "Everybody loves to shout. So, if you know it, SHOUT it out!" Bold, colorful pages follow, filled with things that preschoolers will be able to identify. Fleming covers many concepts: numbers, letters, animals, etc. Her full-page pulp painting illustrations are engaging, and zippy accents have been added with paper collage, pastel pencil, marker, and colored inks.

Reviewer: Ashley Waring | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2011

(1) PS "Tiny baby panda, / sleepy, oh so sleepy. / Tiny baby ostrich, / sleepy, oh so sleepy." Fleming's lullaby-like text features twelve animal babies and one little human slumbering peacefully in close-up portraits (a parent is reassuringly part of each picture). The text follows a comforting pattern, freeing listeners to lose themselves in the sumptuous pulp painting illustrations.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2010

(3) K-3 When his owner goes on vacation, it's off to Sagebrush Kennel's Cowboy Camp for Buster--a prospect that holds absolutely no appeal. Buster soon discovers his worries about homesickness disappear as he paints, plays ball, and helps with the campfire. Fleming's intensely hued pulp-painting illustrations display Buster's transformation from house dog to cowpoke in all its humorous detail.

Reviewer: Cindy Lombardo

(3) PS "Big beetles, small beetles, / crawl-up-the-wall beetles." Who knew there were so many different types of beetles? The verse is descriptive yet succinct, featuring jaunty internal rhyme. Variations in type cleverly reflect the content of each line, and the text interacts playfully with Fleming's strikingly textured pulp-painted close-ups. A page of beetle facts is appended.

Reviewer: Sethany Rancier Alongi

(1) PS A cow dreams that she's a chicken and awakens with a cluck. She encounters various animals, all of whom respond with their proper sound, then she clucks to Hen, who moos back. "It is YOU who has my MOO!" With can't-miss animal sounds, inspired use of repetition, and an engaging story, this book has toddler appeal. The mixed-media illustrations are sophisticated and childlike.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2006

(2) PS Buster the dog's blissful existence is shattered when Brown Shoes brings home a fluffy white feline named Betty. Terrified of cats, Buster tries desperately to ignore her, but as she continues to invade his place and things, he finally runs off and gets lost. The small drama is broken down scene by scene, effectively pacing the action. Fleming's pulp paintings are a celebration of shape, color, and texture.

Reviewer: Lauren Adams | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2003

(3) 4-6 Meet the Author series. Photographs by Karen Bowers. Three popular children's book authors discuss how they became writers and illustrators; their families' role in shaping their destinies; and their artistic process, such as how to do pulp painting. This generally excellent series is distinguished by the authors' humility (Fleming shows readers her less-than-stellar grade-school report card) and by candid snapshots and archival images (regrettably lacking captions). [Review covers these Meet the Author titles: Maker of Things, If You Give an Author a Pencil, and Imagination.]

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(2) PS Fleming's exuberant Mouse takes on the alphabet with all the industriousness of Martha Stewart and a lot more joyful abandon. Gluing G, measuring M, and welding W, Mouse builds letters on well-designed pages saturated with color. Each page is devoted to one letter and a different activity familiar to the alphabet-book crew. Fleming's paper-pulp illustrations are especially well suited to the topic.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2002

(3) PS The board book edition of the paean to farm animal sounds is as lively and colorful as the original. The art is much reduced, and so loses some of its vigor. The type, on the other hand, is much improved since on the darker pages the type is now white, rather than black, and easier to see than it is in the larger picture book.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 1994

(3) PS A string of images evokes the sights and sounds of Halloween in this simple illustrated poem. "Spirits spill" in glowing purples and greens while "witches roam" in dark silhouette against the blue-black night of Fleming's pulp paintings. The atmospheric book conveys the spooky excitement of the holiday.

Reviewer: Lauren Adams

(3) PS Brilliant handmade paper illustrations animate this collection of toddler favorites, including nursery rhymes, the alphabet, counting, shapes, seasons, and images from daily life. Bright colors and bold images will capture the attention of the youngest children in this fine choice for laptime sharing.

Reviewer: CHristine Sarrazin

(3) PS Fleming's distinctive paper-pulp artwork illustrates a repetitive story in which Fluffy and Skinny imitate Mama, while Boris naps. Young children will enjoy the bright, colorful pictures of frolicking kittens and take pleasure in spotting the mouse that scampers through the pages with an agenda of its own.

Reviewer: Anne St. John

(2) PS Fleming's playful guessing game--what fruit or vegetable is hungry Mouse going to eat next?--translates perfectly into board book form. The typeface and boldly colored artwork--large and expansive in the original picture book--shrinks down to board book size without losing impact.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.