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Staake, Bob
9 Reviews
(4)
K-3
When a big blue whale named Beachy washes up on her tiny island, Pixie Picklespeare helps him; they become friends, romping through the ocean all summer long until it's time for Beachy to migrate, as whales do. Lively, retro-style computer-generated cartoons on large double-page spreads buoy an uninspired rhyming text. The endpapers contain a detailed map of Pixie's Island and the surrounding ocean.
Reviewer: Nancy Sheridan
(3)
K-3
A young boy in lively, bustling Smartytown is convinced by his parents that a book is an ideal pet, as it requires no food, walking, or other care. When the pet is accidentally given away, then safely recovered, the boy develops an even deeper bond with his friend. This is a clever rhyming story set against a city rich with colors, shapes, and details.
Reviewer: Pam Yosca
(2)
K-3
A downcast loner, teased or ignored by his classmates, trudges Manhattan's geometric, gray streets, oblivious to possible friendship or fun until his spirits are gradually lifted by the insistent bird following him. Then dusk brings a bullies' ambush, conflict, sorrow--and a dreamlike resurrection accompanied by a many-colored flock. Staake's graphically distinguished art conveys extraordinary depth of emotion for this quietly beautiful book.
Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2013
(3)
K-3
Seek-and-find fans will happily linger over Staake's engaging follow-up to Look! A Book!. Once again, circular cutouts offer peeks of three items that rhyme: "Beef stew! A shoe! A blue kangaroo!" With each page turn, a double-page spread reveals the madcap scene, and readers are directed to search for delightfully wacky objects therein (e.g., crab fondue in a zoo).
Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger
(3)
K-3
Circular cutouts show glimpses of items that rhyme: "A clock! A sock! A toothy croc!" With each page turn, a double-page spread reveals a zany scene, where readers are asked to point out, for example, a mini robot in a jam-packed factory. Kids will enjoy lingering over all the unusual objects in Staake's engaging, amusing seek-and-find illustrations.
Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger
(3)
K-3
Staake tells of how President Obama honored his campaign promise to his daughters and brought a dog to the White House. The straightforward text sticks to the facts: in short, Senator Ted Kennedy brokered the doggy deal. The effervescent illustrations, a combination of traditional and digital art, have the look of crisply cut paper.
Reviewer: Nell Beram
(3)
K-3
Two competing doughnut shops try to out-specialize each other, good taste be damned. The percussion-tight rhymes and comic escalation ("We've donuts laced with kiwi jam, / And served inside an open clam!") evoke Dr. Seuss; Staake even enlists a Cindy Lou Who–type in Debbie Sue, who likes her doughnuts plain. Like pastries, Staake's round-edged illustrations are delectably decorative.
Reviewer: Nell Beram
(3)
K-3
Farmer McPhee rejoices in his perfect yellow lemons. When a red lemon appears on one of his trees, he tosses it over the ocean and onto an island. Two hundred years later the inhabitants are shown rejoicing in their red-lemon lifestyle. The simple story is told in Seussian rhyme, and the graphically bold illustrations are composed mostly of circles.
Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke
(4)
PS
Each of four robots has a special function: Blink cooks, Zinc repairs things, Blip works outdoors, and Zip cleans. A sudden rainstorm results in the now short-circuited quartet switching household tasks to calamitous effect. Written in sometimes clumsy couplets, the overlong story features illustrations that give the robots (like the Teletubbies, they are red, purple, green, and yellow) a pleasingly retro look.
Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta
9 reviews
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