Bound To Stay Bound

View MARC Record
 

Full Text Reviews:

Booklist - 06/01/2017 *Starred Review* The creators of Special Delivery (2015) offer another adventuresome odyssey, undertaken to bring a stranger to a welcoming new home. When snotty Little Amy Scott rejects a birthday goldfish by chucking it into the sea, still in its plastic bag, young Sherman—imagining, in Stead’s sonorous narrative, “that poor fish all alone, floating away, and away, and away, and away”—joins his briskly can-do friend Sadie in a rowboat rescue. In exuberant, Quentin Blake-style watercolors, Cordell inserts a crew of monkeys in Jack Tar dress, a comical cast of sailors who also help the two gather the necessary nautical gear. After weathering high seas, a giant squid, and other watery hazards, the rescuers bring the finny refugee to a town-fountain haven. “When he is hungry, we will feed him,” Sadie promises, as smiling residents gather round. “And when he is lonely, we will keep him company.” (Compassionate to the last, Sherman wonders about Little Amy: “She’ll spend her birthday alone,” Sadie sniffs. “And that’s all right.”) This is comforting fare for children, especially those who themselves have been cast adrift, and sensitive readers in more secure situations may even spare some sympathy for Little Amy. - Copyright 2017 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 07/01/2017 PreS-Gr 2—With comic urgency, a boy races on his bicycle to tell his friend Sadie the story of spoiled Little Amy Scott, who declared that her birthday goldfish was BORING and walked across town to unceremoniously throw it off the dock. The boy, Sherman, asks Sadie if she could imagine that poor fish, still in its bag and floating away, bringing the prologue to an end and spurring Sadie into action. She names the fish Ellsworth, plots a course, and gathers fishing gear, weather-appropriate clothes, a bucket of paint, and 21 pink balloons. A half-dozen monkeys join the kids on their journey as crewmen, adding to the zaniness established by the loose pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations. Readers will admire Sadie's unflappable, no-nonsense response to the dangers at sea, though this is just one of the many gloriously funny details. VERDICT A contemporary tall tale fueled by the characters' genuine caring and heart. Best read one-on-one to feast on the clever cartoon artwork.—Joanna K. Fabicon, Los Angeles Public Library - Copyright 2017 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

View MARC Record
Loading...



  • Copyright © Bound to Stay Bound Books, Inc. All rights reserved.
  • Privacy Policy