School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-5-Joe Peters, "The Can Man," lived in Tim's building until the auto body shop where he worked closed. Unable to find a job, he's now homeless and relies on the cash he gets from redeeming empty cans to survive. When Tim learns that his parents won't have enough money to buy him a skateboard for his birthday, he takes his cue from The Can Man and decides to earn the money himself. However, while he amasses several bags of cans, The Can Man finds almost nothing. Tim has been venturing out ahead and collecting in the homeless man's territory. Joe Peters harbors no hard feelings, though, and even helps Tim at the redemption center. But when the boy weighs his skateboard against the man's urgent need for a winter coat, he gives him the money. The lengthy text describes the homeless man's situation without judgment, and Tim's parents don't pressure him to stop encroaching on Mr. Peters's turf, leaving him free to make his own decisions. The large illustrations, rendered in oil, depict an urban neighborhood of shops and multiethnic apartment dwellers. Pair the book with Ann McGovern's The Lady in the Box (Turtle, 1997) to help students consider the human face of homelessness.-Marianne Saccardi, formerly at Norwalk Community College, CT (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
In Williams's (The Best Winds) poignant story, Tim wants a skateboard badly, but money is tight. Watching a homeless man everyone calls the Can Man (except Tim's parents, who remember when he used to live in their building and still call him by name) collect cans to redeem for cash, Tim decides to do the same to bankroll his skateboard. As he encroaches on the man's turf, Tim suppresses flashes of guilt-especially when the man says he hopes to buy a new coat "before the snow starts flying." After the Can Man offers his shopping cart to help Tim transport his cans to the redemption center, the boy hands him the money he's made. In an emotional final scene, Tim receives a skateboard that the Can Man has refurbished and personalized for him. Orback's (Hot Pursuit: Murder in Mississippi) realistic oil paintings on canvas bring the tale's urban setting into clear focus in warmly lit scenes that illuminate the characters' feelings-notably Tim's unease and his beneficiary's gratitude-and readily transmit the weighty themes at work. Ages 5-10. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Saving up for a skateboard, Tim returns cans for their deposits. It becomes increasingly apparent that he's in competition with a homeless man (who's remarkably sympathetic to Tim's efforts). When Tim realizes how much the "Can Man" needs the money, he relinquishes his earnings and learns a lesson about generosity. Orback's oil paintings enhance this text-heavy morality tale. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
Tim's parents remember when the homeless man who pokes through the garbage on their street used to live in their apartment building before he lost his job. Now, he collects cans and sells them for five cents each. Tim wants a skateboard for his birthday, but Dad says that they can't afford it, so Tim decides to earn the money himself by collecting cans, just like the Can Man does. Tim works hard, and soon he has several bags filled with cans, but as he walks the streets, he notices that the Can Man has no coat. After Tim trades in his collectables at the redemption center, he decides to give his earnings to the Can Man, who returns Tim's generosity with a surprise. The characters feel a bit too perfect here, but the spare dialogue rings true, and the full-page oil paintings have a quiet realism reminiscent of Edward Hopper in scenes of Tim's close multiracial family indoors and the Can Man alone outside. A humanizing story that reaches beyond easy messages.--Rochman, Hazel Copyright 2010 Booklist
