Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 05/01/2012 Young Randall McCoy has decided it is time to put away childish things. He informs his parents that he no longer needs a booster seat, good-for-you vegetables, or his nighttime companion, Mr. Pigglesworth, a stuffed pig in a top hat. But then Randall spies his porcine friend being burgled and gives chase in this charmingly over-the-top romp. In comic-style illustrations, the young boy pursues the robber, shouting “Stop Thief!” as the two run through a series of mazelike nighttime scenes with dotted lines following their winding paths through a zoo, a chocolate factory, a museum, and a carnival. In the end, Randall gets his criminal—and his pig. Visual jokes abound in Lane’s vibrant, detailed illustrations, and readers will want to comb every inch for all the madcap fun, including unusual constellations in the night sky, Oompa Loompa–like workers in the chocolate factory, and a caped crusader hanging out at the zoo’s bat house. - Copyright 2012 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 06/01/2012 PreS-Gr 4—On the first night that Randall tries to sleep like a big boy, without dear, stuffed Mr. Pigglesworth, he becomes restless. Climbing out of bed and making his way downstairs, he encounters a thick-necked stranger with the pig in hand. "Stop, thief!" cries Randall. In this riveting picture book for comic lovers, he gives chase worthy of a feature film. Kids will cheer him on as he twists and winds under the night sky full of constellations, comically drawn to announce the adventures to come. He reels through a zoo, chocolate factory, natural-history museum, and carnival. The swashbuckling chase is all seen from a bird's-eye view and is traceable with a finger due to the trail of arrow and dash marks on a series of maplike spreads. Then they take to the air, the robber in a hot-air balloon, Randall swinging from its rope over the big city. This delightful, dramatic tale is full of energy, intrigue, and humor, and the writing is pitch-perfect. Lines like, "There was no time to think" and "A steady breeze carried the balloon high over the city" season the story with high drama, as do the blown-up comic book views of the night sky. Compassion is evident as well, as the youngster rescues his tormentor and helps reform him. Randall is a true hero, and this is the kind of story that boys crave like candy. Perfect for an action-packed read-aloud, and bound to be read, and pored over, again and again.—Sara Lissa Paulson, American Sign Language and English Lower School PS 347, New York City - Copyright 2012 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Bulletin for the Center... - 07/01/2012 Deciding that he is now a big boy, young Randall McCoy proceeds to eschew such things as booster seats, bedtime hugs and kisses, and even Mr. Pigglesworth, his stuffed pig. When sleep proves impossible without his plush porcine pal, Randall goes to retrieve Mr. P., only to discover a thief in the act of stealing him. Repeatedly crying “Stop thief!”, Randall pursues the robber (via a dotted yellow line) through the zoo, a chocolate factory, a museum, and a fair. After the thief boards a hot-air balloon, a skyscraper puts a stop to the escape all right, but as the thief dangles from the building, “It was Randall to the rescue!” Once he returns home and his parents put their tired son to bed with kisses and Mr. Pigglesworth, this time Randall is perfectly happy to let them. This is pure little-kid fantasy, with Randall’s magnified exploits representing the grownup heroism to which many a tot aspires, while the cozy bedtime ending gives them the security they still require. The chase and the ending ramble just a bit, but kids will enjoy following the path that the thief and Randall take through the various settings, and while some kids may question Randall’s sudden altruism towards the thief, they will certainly be relieved to see Randall reunited with the adorable, top-hatted Mr. Pigglesworth. Lane’s cartoony illustrations use muted brights (appropriate to the nocturnal setting) and dynamic, action-packed compositions to complement his humorous text, and the red-pajamas-wearing Randall is a stalwart, if pint-sized, protagonist. Pair this with Spinelli’s more realistic A Big Boy Now (BCCB 3/12) for a storytime about becoming “big,” or share it as a lively bedtime read. JH - Copyright 2012 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

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