  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 09/01/2013 PreS-Gr 1—The opening lines of this story will grab the attention of anyone who has ever felt the thrill of finding a hidden note. Emma is suspicious of a carousel polar bear's ability to write a note, let alone ask for a balloon, but she plays along, "just in case." What happens next requires even more balloons and a trip into Emma's imagination as she and the polar bear are lifted into the night sky toward the North Star. When they land, Emma is grateful that she is wearing her red snow boots. She and the bear scale icy mountains, trudge through deep snow, and (on a double gatefold) encounter polar bears partying. Ward combines prints of maps and colorful paper to lend a whimsical and jaunty air to the pair's nighttime escapade. Finally, the two travelers sail home and Emma gets tucked into bed, only to wake up and find "everything as it always was." When she returns to the carousel, she finds another note, asking for something even more surprising. While the story line labors over the dream/reality transition, readers will appreciate the ending. Emma's adventure would make an interesting prompt for imaginative writing.—Jenna Boles, Greene County Public Library, OH - Copyright 2013 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Booklist - 11/01/2013 The adventure begins with a scrap of paper peeking out from under a polar bear’s saddle on the carousel. It instructs Emma to “Please bring” and there’s a drawing of a balloon. After tying a red polka-dotted balloon to his saddle, she leaves for school, before returning to find yet another note, this one telling her to “Please bring MORE!” Once two dozen or so balloons are secured, Emma sits on the polar bear, who begins to float upward “toward the North Star.” When they finally arrive at their snowy destination, a gatefold reveals an all-out “polar bear rumpus!” After dancing till midnight, they say their good-byes and float back down to earth. It’s a rather anticlimactic ending, but the story’s atmosphere is what makes this one work. Cut-paper collage illustrations, which include maps and algebraic equations, play against a starry night sky, creating a beautiful backdrop for a flight of fancy. Little kids, balloon and carousel lovers one and all, will enjoy this magical romp from the creator of When Blue Met Egg (2012). - Copyright 2013 Booklist. Loading...
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