Available:*
Library | Call Number | Status |
|---|---|---|
Searching... Silver Falls Library | JP REID | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... McMinnville Public Library | Reid | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Salem Main Library | JP Reid | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
A child examines the many different buttons in Grandma's button box.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
The first two pages of this book are almost exciting. A boy narrator states he likes the contents of a special box at his grandmother's house. Turn the page and there is a box of buttons--no words--just buttons. Unfortunately, it's all downhill from there. The boy describes various buttons, telling what he imagines and knows about them--that some came from shoes or from his grandfather's pants. A brief history of buttons appears in the back. A story about buttons just isn't much of a story, and the grocery-store quality illustrations in dull, lifeless watercolors without detail or depth don't help. Even the layout is sloppy. --Denise Krell, New York Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
As they examine, arrange, and discuss an old collection of buttons, a boy and his grandmother enrich their communication with each other. Although the plot is nonexistent, the bold, colorful pictures invite the reader into the enjoyable activity. From HORN BOOK 1990, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
What to do with a box of old buttons may seem like a slight notion for a book (and it doesn't made much of a story), but this lightly fictionalized enumeration of the ways that buttons' variety can open windows on critical thinking should provide an inspiration to parents and teachers. The young narrator explains how Grandma's buttons can be sorted by shape, size, color, material, and the manner of their decoration; and how they come from different sources, like uniforms, and suggest imaginative play (jewels for ""kings and queens and movie stars""). Chamberlain's bold linoleum cuts, with gentle color added, portray the buttons is loving detail and give the book an appropriately old-fashioned flavor. A good idea, well carried out. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Ages 5-8. In this unusual offering, a boy sifts through his grandmother's button box; what he finds might seem utilitarian to some but is exotic in his eyes. He pretends the sparkly buttons once belonged to kings and queens; he lines the shiny circles up like marchers in a parade. The boy is taken with the luxurious feel of the buttons, as well as the legion of stories that they suggest. As he buttons his shirt in the final picture, he wonders "who first figured out buttons"--a question Reid attempts to answer in an afterword. Beautiful buttons of every shape and size are displayed in ambitious linoleum cuts marked by interesting perspectives and deep colors; this is art with a look all its own. Besides inspiring some flights of fancy for readers, the book will suggest many uses to parents and librarians as a basis for games, history lessons, and puppetry, among other ideas. And how nice to see a male protagonist who doesn't mind exercising his imagination in less than traditional ways. --Ilene Cooper