(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. When their glass kingdom falls to ruin, the king and queen need the magical assistance of dirt-loving, forest-dwelling fairy Bloom, but they won't accept her on her (muddy) terms. Cronin, an ace at plotting, is in fine form here, resulting in a top-drawer girl-power-themed fairy tale. The elegant art is all the more impressive for dazzling under a layer of dirt.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. Classy cat Glamourpuss, who lives with the "gazillionaire" Highhorsens, is royally upstaged when a guest arrives with her show-off dog, Bluebelle. But when Glamourpuss discovers that Bluebelle hates doing her show-pony act, the cat helps her find her true (Glamourpuss-like) identity. Like its art (don't miss Bluebelle in her Carmen Miranda getup), the story is funny.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. Marshall thinks the story about runaway gingerbread men is baloney, but he reconsiders when the gingerbread cookies that he and his classmates make escape from the oven. Aside from the nod to the classic story, there is nothing traditional here, from the hip teacher ("Kudos, Marsh...You rocked that dough") to the springy illustrations of the kids playing detective at school.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(2) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. When his father takes him to the aquarium, Eliot heads for the penguins, then takes one home in his backpack. As the illustrations reveal, the whole scenario works because Eliot's father is so focused on his own obsession with turtles that he is humorously oblivious--until the surprise ending--to what Eliot is doing. Buzzeo has crafted a droll narrative; Small's illustrations complement the child-friendly premise.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2012

(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. This compelling story records the tough first months of Isabel's life after her family immigrates to America from Mexico. Through letters to her auntie, Isabel describes learning a different language and having new experiences; she also describes how she finds comfort and safety inside the empty boxes she collects and decorates. An intimate immigration story, movingly reinforced by Small's colorful and dynamic illustrations.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter

(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. A girl fantasizes that her bedtime wind-down is princess-esque: "Will she hold a candelabra / while climbing up the stairs / and have a frothy glass of milk / with chocolate cream éclairs?" The princess fantasy (complete with commoner parents bemusedly looking on) is familiar, but the rhymes are nicely lilting, and Small indulges the girl's imagination with relish.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(2) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. When Elsie is eight, she, her papa, and canary Timmy Tune leave beloved Boston for the Nebraska frontier. After Timmy escapes, Elsie begins to listen to the voices of the plains. Small's illustrations are rendered with impressionistic freedom: a mélange of expressive broad strokes, delicate line, free-flowing color, expansive vistas, and subtle characterizations that reinforce the emotional impact of Yolen's gentle, lyrical story.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2010

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by David Small. Underneath a ramshackle cabin, an abandoned cat, newborn kittens, and an old bloodhound make a loving family. Counterpointing their present-day story is another reaching back centuries. Appelt spins a lyrical, circling narrative, its characters well realized in Small's excellent full-page drawings. This fine book is distinguished by the originality of the story and the fresh beauty of its author's voice.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2008

(2) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. Cal sees no cause to sit "stoney-still / a-staring at some chicken scratch." His sister Lark, however, is an avid reader, and their parents warmly welcome a librarian from the WPA's Pack Horse Library Project into their remote Appalachian home. Small's deft lines and masterful watercolors convey the family's affection and Cal's mixed emotions about reading.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2008

(2) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. From the moment the triceratops bursts out of the bakery’s back room ("buy a dozen, get a dinosaur"), this very tall tale grabs readers’ attention. Small's energetic watercolor and ink illustrations are a perfect choice for such an absurdist dream-come-true for dinosaur fans. Kids will go wild for this story of dinosaurs as suburban pets.

Reviewer: Robin L. Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2008

(2) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. Take a juggler, a mischievous monkey, a banana peel, and a man on a ladder, and put them on a busy city street. What will happen? Small's energetic line-and-watercolor paintings take us through a circuit of slapstick chaos. Armstrong's concept could have been presented wordlessly, but instead she slyly gives textual signs of impending disaster. The final endpapers reveal the larger picture.

Reviewer: Lolly Robinson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2007

(4) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. Senator Ted Kennedy's dog, Splash, describes a typical day on Capitol Hill. The book drags at the beginning, as Splash explains how "my Senator" adopted him, and the narration tends toward long-windedness. But it picks up steam by the time it presents a conference committee debating an education bill. The loose-handed art is full of officious blues and browns but also has considerable warmth.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. The theme of an underloved white child and an understanding black servant has a significant if complicated presence in American children's books, but the formula isn't resuscitated here. Despite some lyrical moments, the rhyming text is bumpy, imperfectly metered, and awkward. The tender pictures deserve a more direct telling.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2004

(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. As a boy and girl travel around the world--in a hot-air balloon, astride an elephant, in a snowmobile--they get a firsthand view of legendary monsters from various cultures. Scandinavian trolls and the North American Sasquatch are among the sometimes scary, usually amusing (thanks to Small's energetic art) creatures introduced in Ashman's poems, notable for their stylistic variety.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by David Small. St. George's breezy text introduces fifty inventors, a cursory treatment that reveals little about inventors, inventions, or a sense of inventiveness as a whole. Small's caricatures are clever and humorous but lack the multilayered sophistication so evident in the pair's So You Want to Be President? On the other hand, his recurring artistic theme, that there is dignity in the work one does, is nicely realized. Bib.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2002

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by David Small. A wind-up toy mouse and his child undertake a dangerous quest in order to become self-winding. Although this cult classic has been packaged to appeal to middle-grade readers, the content isn't really appropriate for that age group. With its parable-like flavor and sly commentary on the human condition, it will likely once again find its place as a cult classic among high school and college students.

Reviewer: Terri Schmitz

(2) 1-3 Illustrated by David Small. The Journey records a trip to Chicago for Amish Hannah. Double-page spreads set in Chicago, paired with entries from Hannah's diary, alternate with wordless spreads depicting the home that Hannah has left behind--Amish scenes both suggested by the diary entries and visually paralleling the preceding city scenes. The pictures effectively convey the idea that the way we see things depends on where we're coming from.

Reviewer: Susan P. Bloom | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2001

(1) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. This sequel to Company's Coming is, if anything, funnier than the first. The benign visitors from outer space want earthlings Moe and Shirley to cater their sister's wedding on Nextoo, which is located--wait for it--"next to Uranus." The broadly humorous, blithely innocent story is supported by the lighthearted illustrations, which are as funny in their juxtapositions of outlandish events and the everyday-ness of the characters' behavior as the text.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2002

(2) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. The presidential faces on Mount Rushmore are depicted in a jovial cartoon style on the cover--an encouraging invitation to the witty observations within. Arranging historical tidbits in an attractive buffet, this well-timed book offers anecdotes both cautionary and guaranteed to attract attention and arouse interest. Appended are brief biographical sketches of the presidents and a short bibliography.

Reviewer: Mary M. Burns | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2000

(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. This edition features a larger trim size and new colorization of the lively cartoon illustrations. When a spaceship lands next to the tool shed, Shirley invites the alien visitors to dinner. By the time the spacemen return, the house is surrounded by soldiers and police, but Shirley's trust in the face of hysteria reveals the spacemen's good intentions. Shirley's everyday reactions to the outsize events are hilarious.

Reviewer: Erica L. Stahler