School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-5-A humorous collection of poems, many of which are about travel and foreign places. Others tell of silly monsters or situations based on puns such as "Fishing for Compliments." "Yet Another Poem to Send to Your Worst Enemy" is a series of insults, ending "Yours sincerely, toodle-oo." "I Feel Sick!" is about car sickness and "Are We Nearly There Yet?" is meant to be read "in a monotonous drone" at the onset of a car trip. "Aliens on Vacation" describes monstrous aliens who come to earth in a giant spaceship to see the sights and "look for souvenirs"-like the Eiffel Tower, the Wailing Wall, Mount Everest, the Empire State Building, Big Ben, and the Golden Gate Bridge-to take back to their planet. The book is illustrated with McNaughton's trademark exaggerated, cartoon-style artwork rendered in pen and ink and watercolor. One picture depicts an Egyptian pyramid drawn into the spaceship by powerful rays. Though the poetry and art are not of the highest quality, their quirky humor will appeal to readers.-Anne Parker, Milton Public Library, MA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
The sublimely silly McNaughton returns with a collection of poems that poke fun at the world of travel. One of the best is "First Draft of the Most Famous Australian Song Ever," whose chorus begins, "Waltzing the builder,/ Waltzing St. Kilda,/ Who'll come a-waltzing with Hilda and me?" Another standout is "The Nomad Rush" which begins: "If in the desert you should be/ And men on camels you should see/ Going slowly, that would be/ The famous Nomad Rush." Then there's Frankenstein reporting on his world tour: "I left my heart in San Francisco,/ My torso in Nepal,/ My arms in Valparaiso/ And my legs in Montreal." McNaughton's poems are redolent with puns, nonsense words, wisecracks and child-pleasing ickyness ("The food's okay, if you like fish--And things that crawl across your dish"). And no one can fault him for ambitiousness--many of the poems are of a substantial length. But a few of the longer ones that start out with a bang end with a whimper; he's best with the quick, limericky jokes like "Panic on the Titanic," in which the narrator is riding a "ship of the desert" (a camel) named Titanic and it sinks into the sand. Goofy drawings, many of them depicting the hapless author himself, are sprinkled liberally throughout the pages. Ages 7-12. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
McNaughton's poems call for a certain sense of humor, but those readers who can follow his allusions to such works as [cf2]Treasure Island[cf1] and Waltzing Matilda will have a fine time. Less sophisticated readers can still enjoy themselves as they reflect on their own experiences, mirrored in Are We Nearly There Yet? and I Feel Sick! Comical illustrations round out this generally amusing collection. From HORN BOOK Fall 2000, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
