Timothy Tunny Swallowed a Bunny

FROM THE WINDOW SEAT: CHILDREN’S BOOKS

Timothy Tunny Swallowed a Bunny by Bill Grossman

I do a lot of squawking when it comes to rhyming in picture books. People all too frequently just don’t know what they’re doing and end up unleashing poetic monstrosities on poor, unsuspecting children. However, I’m more than willing to admit (and frankly, overjoyed) when somebody gets it right. Timothy Tunny is a little different, since it’s a collection of poems rather than a rhyming story, but it can easily take its place on the shelf next to a book like Where the Sidewalk Ends. Each poem is about a different hysterical character, each with his/her own wonderful eccentricities. Obviously, there’s Timothy Tunny, the bunny-swallower of the title, but there’s also the man who insists he doesn’t exist, who uses his trait to covort in the mud ("I’m glad I’m not here," / He says, "for I fear / If I were I’d be covered with crud."), Kevin T. Moses with his 17 noses (Kevin T. Moses / Has seventeen noses, / Each birthday he grows a new nose), and a host of others, all completely delightful to read.

As funny as each poem is, amazingly Kevin Hawkes’ illustrations manage to take the humor even farther. My favorite is his painting of the woman in town who is afraid that she’ll drown. Grossman hits us with a poem about a woman so afraid of drowning that she affixes a small scuba suit to her nose. Hawkes then does him one better by showing us the woman sitting in a boat in the middle of the desert. Fantastic.

Dog’s Colorful Day by Emma Dodd

Counting books are usually pretty dull. Sure, they serve a great purpose, but ho-hum. Yeah,, 1-10, got it. Emma Dodd, however, seems to have done the impossible – she’s made a counting book that’s fun, and actually tells a good story in the process. Our main character, Dog, is white with one black spot. As he goes about his day, he manages to acquire new spots here and there. Red jam under the table – now he’s got 2 spots. Accidental tail dip in some paint – 3 spots. This simple but clever conceit continues until Dog has ten spots, and then we get a recap. And the really sneaky thing is that Dodd manages to get a color lesson in here as well (each of Dog’s new spots is a different color). But, since the counting and colors come in the course of a story, a fun story, you don’t feel like a lesson is being crammed down your throat, which is the way learning should be.

Since the title is Dog’s Colorful Day, obviously the illustrations are going to be colorful. They’re bright and happy, and as simple as the story. A perfect match, and a good read.

Pepito the Brave by Scott Beck, Dutton

Ah, the time in life when one has to leave home. Some people find it easier than others, but no one seems to have as hard a time with it as Pepito. Pepito is a little bird who needs to leave the nest, but the problem is, he’s afraid of heights. This makes flying away a bit of a problem. (I’d imagine that it would make living in the nest no picnic too, but this never gets addressed.) So like most people (or birds in this case) he avoids it. When he finds himself in a new situation, someone happens by to give him some advice. A fox suggests he run to where he’s going (I got nervous when he came across a fox, but fortunately the food chain doesn’t apply here), a frog tells him to hop, a gopher to burrow. After his various attempts to not fly, he makes it to his brothers’ and sisters’ new tree, and realizes that what he’s done is much harder than actually trying to fly. It’s a charming story with a good message – often facing up to our fears is much easier than running from them.
Beck’s illustrations are simple and fun. Pepito is a red, round little thing, and despite his apparent simplicity, Beck is able to convey a wide range of emotions on Pepito’s face. We see fear, determination, and the desire to succeed despite his fears.

The Stray Dog by Marc Simont, HarperCollins

As someone who has taken in his share of stray animals, I can totally relate to the family in The Stray Dog. While picnicking one day, they befriend a dog that wanders by. Everyone immediately falls in love, but they leave him behind, figuring he belongs to someone else. But as the week goes by, none of them can get the dog, that they’ve named Willy, off their mind. So naturally the next Saturday they go back to that same spot to see if Willy’s still there. They find that not only does he not have an owner, but they’ve arrived just in time to avert a catastrophe. Kids who love animals will definitely get caught up in the action, and even those who don’t will appreciate the quick thinking children who save the day.
Simont’s watercolors have a nice softness that complement the appealing story. They give the pictures a sort of dreamy feel, almost like a long-remembered story, which it turns out this is. Simont based the book on an experience his friend had, and knowing this, it all makes perfect sense.

Car Wash by Sandra Steen and Susan Steen, illustrated by G. Brian Karas, Putnam

When I was little I used to love to go to the car wash. All the suds and big fuzzy scrubbers always provided a fun opportunity to imagine all sorts of adventures. Sandra and Susan Steen apparently felt the same way, and they have done a great job of capturing this experience in Car Wash. They portray a trip through the car wash as a submarine mission, and not only that, they do it using very few words. "What’s that? Giant arms. Octopus. Whomp! Thomp!" It’s a very impressionistic story, and the words they do use are ones that make for a fun read-aloud. Who wouldn’t like yelling "Whoosh! Whoosh! Hurricane!"?

G. Brian Karas had his work cut out for him. How can you make the weird mechanisms of a car wash look fun? Well, he somehow pulls it off. Jets spraying water pop out from all angles, air jets form convoluted patterns, and the addition of some nontraditional media to his paintings, such as felt and starfish make for a unique look as fin as the text.

By Erik P. Kraft