Children's Book Reviews

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Old Turtle by Douglas Wood, Watercolors by Cheng-Khee Chee
Pfeifer-Hamilton Publishers, 1992 .
Picture Book, 44 pages
ISBN: 0439309085
Ages 4-8
Ordering information:
Amazon.com

Old Turtle
by Douglas Wood, Watercolors by Cheng-Khee Chee

Old Turtle by Douglas Wood with illustrations by Cheng-Khee Chee is a beautiful and spiritual book. First published in 1993, it was chosen as the 1993 Book of the Year by the American Booksellers Association and was awarded the 1993 Children's Book Award by the International Reading Association. If this book is not already in your collection, it should now be added.

Old Turtle is a very special blending of text and illustration. The enchanting and mystical water colors of Cheng-Khee Chee begin to weave their spell from the cover of the book through to the last page. Told as a fable, the message of Old Turtle begins with simple words under beautiful, yet small, paintings. Slowly the words increase with the size of the illustrations, until both fill the pages with stunning and uplifting words and color.

Old Turtle begins slowly with each part of the earth proclaiming what God is, and each predictably sees God as a reflection of itself. The different animals and parts of the earth begin to argue about the nature of God, until the argument became louder, and louder and louder. Then the voice of Old Turtle, who has rarely spoken before, is heard and it is like thunder. Old Turtle says that there will be a new kind of creature in the world that will be very different from other animals and that it will come in many colors and shapes. The people come and while they were as wonderful as the Old Turtle had predicted, they also begin to argue and hurt the earth until the forests and oceans begin to die. Then a voice seems to come from everywhere, the mountains, the oceans and the breezes and it seems to say that God is everywhere and that his love touches everything. After a long time, the people begin to listen and see God in each other and in the earth as well. The Old Turtle smiles and so does God.

Although it speaks of God, Old Turtle has a message that can be acceptable to all spiritual persons, regardless of faith. It will give a child a sense of love and comfort. The beauty of the illustrations and of the message make Old Turtle a very special book that will enchant both adults and children.

--Sarah Reaves White

Sammy and the Robots by Ian Whybrow, Illustrated by Adrian Reynolds
Orchard Books, May, 2001.
Picture Book, 32 pages
ISBN: 0531303276
Ages 4-8
Ordering information:
Amazon.com

Sammy and the Robots
by Ian Whybrow, Illustrated by Adrian Reynolds

Ian Whybrow has written a sensitive book about a little boy who loves his toy robots and his grandmother who understands him. In the story, Sammy is shocked when his robot falls over and its lights go out. Sammy hears Gran coughing in the next room, so he runs in to show her his robot. Gran and Sammy discover that a battery has leaked onto the robot's wires, so they pack it up and send it off to the robot hospital. Then Sammy decides to build another robot while he waits for the first one to come back from the hospital. Sadly, Gran is too sick to help and has to go back to bed. The next morning Gran is nowhere to be seen, and Mom explains that Gran has gone to the hospital to get her cough cured. So Sammy tries to build a robot on his own, a robot that will blast away Gran's cough. Sammy teaches the robot to talk and to blast a cough. Sammy goes to the hospital to see Gran, but he and his sister Meg can only see her through a window and Gran does not open her eyes. Sammy sneaks into Gran's room when the grownups are not watching and holds his robot up so that it can blast Gran's cough. Mom is alarmed, but the doctor says that a robot might help Gran a lot. So Sammy makes more robots, which he places all around Gran's bed. When he next visits Gran in the hospital the robots have blasted Gran's cough; she can come home. Gran comes home and is well enough to check on the chickens, and the first robot comes home from the robot hospital as good as new.

This little tale of Sammy and his robots leaves many doors open for an adult to explore with a young child. Grandparents do get sick and have to go to hospitals, and this can produce fears in a young child. It is comforting to hear a story about a child who could do something for a grandparent using his toys and skills. There is fantasy here, but it is not too fanciful, for who knows what the small child of today may invent in the future? Many childish dreams become the real future of the person.

Adrian Reynolds has drawn Sammy as a simple little boy using minimal lines, almost as a cartoonist does. The pictures of Sammy and Gran are large and simple, but sensitive in their expressions. Strong, bright colors are also used to appeal to young minds. The result is strong, simple illustrations that will be easy for a child to understand and will convey the emotion of the characters in an effective way.

Stories that deal with some of the problems that young children must deal with can be the starting point for many conversations with adults, and they can help a child formulate his fears and anxieties in a positive way. Sammy and the Robots would be an excellent starting point for a child to express his feelings about illness and those he loves.

--Sarah Reaves White

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Children's Book Reviews

Old Turtle by Douglas Wood, Watercolors by Cheng-Khee Chee

Sammy and the Robots by Ian Whybrow, Illustrated by Adrian Reynolds