Thank you for visiting.
This content is exclusive to subscribers only.
As a digital subscriber, you’ll receive unlimited access to Horn Book web exclusives and extensive archives, as well as access to our highly searchable Guide/Reviews Database.
To access other site content, visit The Horn Book homepage.
Log In
Don't have a Horn Book Account?
Register Now
Register Now
O'Brien, John
3 Reviews
(4)
K-3
New Yorker cartoonist O'Brien's mostly wordless, episodic pen, ink, and watercolor vignettes loosely follow the travails of a dairy farmer, chef, woodsman, knight, doorman, and clown. Playing off idioms and often-told anecdotes (e.g., a waiter fishes the letters F, L, and Y out of a diner's bowl of alphabet soup), many jokes succeed, but others are cryptic and as flat as the muted color palette.
Reviewer: Allison Cole
(2)
K-3
Illustrated by
John O'Brien.
Each double-page spread covers an event in a typical day on the stand, reminding readers that lifeguards are more than Dudley Do-Right look-alikes with zinc oxide on their noses. A brief narrative arc connects each event, while the illustrations show busy lifeguards performing their duties and sunworshipers and bathers enjoying the ocean.
Reviewer: Betty Carter
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2004
(3)
K-3
When the baby cries, the wizard's wife says it's his turn to change the baby. So change the baby he does: he waves his wand, and "POOF!"--the baby becomes a cat. It's his wife's turn to feed the cat, but "POOF!"--she changes the cat into a dog. Sketchy drawings complement and extend the silly text, while the surprise ending is satisfying and perfect for this tale of changes.
Reviewer: Patricia Riley
3 reviews
We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing.