(2) K-3 Illustrated by Barry Blitt. Winter affectionately focuses on kooky Yankees manager Stengel, a mediocre player in his day (although he did best Babe Ruth in the 1923 World Series). Winter uses an old-timer's storytelling style, playing up Stengel's wackiness. Blitt's illustrations use caricature and perspective to reflect Stengel's larger-than-life persona. An author's note is appended; the lack of sources and further reading is the only weak spot. Glos.

Reviewer: Sam Bloom | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2016

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Barry Blitt. Irreverent portraits--in witty text, quick facts, and pen-and-ink and watercolor caricatures--of the men who fought, orated, wrote the constitution, and led the nation in its early days. Winter comically describes a "Varsity Squad" (Washington, Jefferson, etc.) and dubs lesser-known men "Junior Varsity" (including Samuel Adams and John Hancock). No index or pagination, but great material for debates. Reading list, websites.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(2) PS Illustrated by Barry Blitt. A big sister tells her brother everything he missed during his nap: bulldozer-driving, dinosaur fossils, pirates, space travel, and more. That her yarn is based on specific items in her brother's room--toy truck, dinosaur model, pirate book--adds insult to injury. The conversational text gets that teasing big-sisterly tone just right. The illustrations combine child-centered nonsense imagery with wicked humor adults will appreciate.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2014

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Barry Blitt. McNamara debunks the cherry tree fable plus others, intermingling them with real facts to imagine Washington's seventh birthday. Boxed notes distinguish truth from fancy, as does George's page-long first-person concluding note, which also summarizes his later life. Blitt's energetic, lighthearted pen and watercolor art, in colonial blues and browns, is evocative of the period while augmenting the text's humor.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2012

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Barry Blitt. This picture book biography, covering Twain's varied adventures, from riverboating to writing to performing (as well as his markedly sad last years), complicates the narrative by having Huck ("You don't know about me, without you have read a book by the name of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer") tell the story. Soft-hued, often humorous watercolor and ink art helps readers navigate the text.

Reviewer: Betty Carter

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Barry Blitt. This Where the Sidewalk Ends–type collection includes over one hundred twenty short poems characterized by adept wordplay, clever twists, and infectious repetition. The mood, predominantly light, is occasionally morbid in a Silverstein-esque way (e.g., a cliff-side game of dodge ball ends with children falling over the edge). The volume is generously illustrated with black-and-white pen, ink, and watercolor caricatures. Ind.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Barry Blitt. "FACT: Ludwig van Beethoven lived in 39 different apartments." This information provides the slim premise for this amusing and imaginative explanation of why the famous composer lived in so many places and how he moved his pianos so frequently. Blitt's exaggerated caricatures of Beethoven, his neighbors, and the unfortunate moving men provide plenty of visual humor.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac