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Freeman, Don
7 Reviews
(4)
K-3
A squirrel is looking for an acorn he hid months before, but the bustle of Washington, D.C., makes it difficult. Corduroy author Don Freeman's son, Roy, finished this manuscript after his father's death. The story is little more than an excuse to illustrate our nation's capital. The conflict doesn't carry readers through; it's the landmarks' depictions that provide the real entertainment.
Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth
(2)
K-3
Maestro Petrini, a mouse, is page turner for the Metropolitan Opera's prompter. When cat Mefisto spots the maestro, a chase nearly ends in disaster; the power of music saves the day. Energetic crayon illustrations bring the opera's bustling backstage world to life. This new edition is slightly larger than the original, and the art seems brighter and clearer.
Reviewer: Terri Schmitz
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
April, 1953
(3)
K-3
If she were the librarian, Cary would allow all the animals "to come in and browse." As she welcomes a parade of creatures into the reading room, readers know pandemonium will break loose. Luckily, a canary with a piercing song comes to the rescue. Freeman contrasts more detailed drawings of the actual library with childlike crayoned depictions of Cary's daydreamed adventure.
Reviewer: Terri Schmitz
(2)
K-3
A goose named Willoughby goes to London, where he hopes to become useful. Unprepared for the noise and confusion, he is saved by an understanding young man named Shakespeare. The engaging story is illustrated with watercolors that have wit and style and that convey much information about the Elizabethan setting.
Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
October, 1975
(2)
K-3
This Caldecott Honor book tells the story of Sid and Midge, a San Francisco pigeon and dove who set up housekeeping in the letter B of the Bay Hotel's sign. Panoramic views of the city alternate with pigeon's-eye perspectives in this tale of the complications that arise when the sign, with its egg-filled nest, is dismantled and moved.
Reviewer: Terri Schmitz
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
October, 1957
(3)
K-3
Manuelo, a praying mantis, is inspired to learn to play music after attending an outdoor summer concert. He succeeds in making a cello with a walnut shell body and spider web strings. Freeman did not finish this book before his death, and a few of the illustrations were completed from his sketches. The art successfully conveys the warmth and lushness of a summer meadow in this story about following a passion.
Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth
(4)
PS
This posthumous offering tells the story of Gregory Groundhog and how he mistakenly becomes separated from his shadow the day before Groundhog's Day. Luckily, the two are reunited and band together to cheer the anxious farmers looking for them the next morning. This gentle tale, with its soft, sketchy artwork, is weak but has an old-fashioned appeal.
Reviewer: Susan Halperin
7 reviews
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