(3) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. From the first whispers of the wind calling the raindrops to the stomping thunder and lightning, a mother encourages her daughter to appreciate the progression of a rainstorm. Although the child voices concerns, her mother's gentle answers reassure her that she and the animals are safe. Soft acrylic illustrations provide a comfortable setting for this quiet, evocative text.

Reviewer: Patricia Riley

(4) PS Illustrated by Susan Gaber. In a countdown to bedtime, ten sheep try everything to avoid the inevitable but can't help dropping off one by one. The sleepy rhythm and gentle illustrations make good bedtime companions. The text is just right for a board book audience, but the illustrations are slightly less successful in this smaller edition.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2004

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. For sport, the sun and the wind compete to make a passing man remove his overcoat. Swirling, fanciful images show a bright, smiling, yellow sun and the dark, gray, angry wind. Though the book is visually striking, Forest's language can be overly earnest and a bit didactic ("I did not force him at all...Through gentleness I won my way").

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. The celebration of the birth of Jesus starts as a cumulative rhyme and then, halfway through, reverses direction until it ends with the beginning verses. The circular narrative may confuse some readers because the events do not occur in logical order. The acrylic art, however, captures the Nativity scene and the shepherds' wonder at the angel who appeared to them.

Reviewer: Anne St. John

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. "A little Red Hen lived in a house, / with a frisky dog, a cat, and a mouse." This retelling of the classic story about the hard-working hen who teaches her lazy friends a lesson has an unusual, lilting rhythm. The work benefits from Gaber's colorful, folksy, gently humorous pastel illustrations, modernized with subtle cut-paper effects.

Reviewer: Amanda Sullivan

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. A young girl is waiting for an "angel on horseback" to arrive with a new baby. Life in the Appalachian past, with its natural beauty, quilting bees, and hand-carved cradles, is evocatively described in poetic language, and the acrylic paintings are softly rendered. An author's note includes more information about the "angels"--nurse-midwives from the Frontier Nursing Service.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(2) PS Illustrated by Susan Gaber. Counting sheep at bedtime isn't so predictable when ten lambs still want to play. Sleep finally wins out as one by one they close their eyes. Gentle verse counts down the group with playful imagery and creative rhymes for each number. Nightlights from the glowing farmhouse and stars help make the soft spring outdoors as cozy as a quilt, a lovely place for all little ones to settle down for the night.

Reviewer: Lauren Adams | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2004

(4) PS Illustrated by Susan Gaber. The cumulative verses forming this account of the first Thanksgiving from a Pilgrim perspective have definite kid appeal. Beginning and ending with the "Indians, skillful and strong," the rhymes are catchy if occasionally forced, and the chronology--from the feast backward to the settlers' departure from England, then forward again to the feast--is innovative. Careful, somewhat stylized acrylics illustrate the text.

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. A merchant sends his two sons out into the world. Vasilii's deceits repeatedly get him into trouble, but Ivan (dreamy, yet wiser) wins respect, a kingdom, and the service of his father and brother. Martin's excellent source note sets this Russian tale in the context of stories from several cultures that contrast worldly realists with generous dreamers. Gaber's lush, stylized scenes are satisfyingly dramatic and expressive.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2000

(3) PS Illustrated by Susan Gaber. "Where oh where do the leaves all go / when winter comes and the cold winds blow?" A rhythmic text is accompanied by atmospheric paintings of a family's walk during the first snowfall of the season. The lyrical rhymes, representing a young child's questions about what happens to the plants and animals in the cold, are both memorable and informative.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. Lying down to rest, lazy Pierre wakes to find a circus has set up around him while he slept. Thinking that he must be dreaming, he believes he can do anything, from taming a charging lion to dancing on a tightrope to standing on the back of a galloping horse. Armstrong's storytelling is delightfully understated and enhanced by Gaber's beautifully composed, richly detailed paintings.

Reviewer: Jennifer Polshek

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. The celebration of the birth of Jesus starts as a cumulative rhyme and then, halfway through, reverses direction until it ends with the beginning verses. The circular narrative may confuse some readers, because the events do not occur in logical order. The acrylic artwork, however, captures the Nativity scene and the wonder of the shepherds at the angel who appeared to them.

Reviewer: Anne St. John

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Susan Gaber. Although Raisel must labor as the nasty cook's helper in a rabbi's home after her grandfather's death, she has been taught well by her Zaydeh about the value of study and is no helpless Cinderella. It is Raisel's intelligence, not her beauty, that entrances the princely Rabbi's son after her kindness to a beggar woman wins her three wishes--among them a beautiful Purim costume. Gaber conveys a folkish simplicity with a sophisticated line to evoke a Poland of both dreams and reality.

Reviewer: Susan P. Bloom | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 1999

(4) K-3 By proposing to make a "magical soup" from a single stone, two poor travelers induce the tightfisted inhabitants of a prosperous village to contribute all the ingredients for a delectable stew. The illustrations present a multicultural and an attractive array of characters. However, with its repeated reminders about caring and sharing, this is a rather didactic version of the familiar tale. Recipe included.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.

(3) K-3 While all the other animals are fleeing from a forest fire, a parrot desperately tries to put out the flames. Her bravery inspires the compassion of a god, whose tears not only put out the fire but revive life as well. Dramatic paintings illustrate this jataka tale from India, which describes one of Buddha's past lives in a way that teaches a moral lesson, but so charmingly that it doesn't seem didactic at all.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.