From School Library Journal
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Kindergarten-Grade 2—The imaginative young boy
in this marvelous story has some unusual answers to a frequently
asked question. The youngster, clad in overalls and a cap, dreams
of being "a pumpkin grower," "puddle stomper," or "silly-joke
teller." Both the lilting text and amusing watercolor and acrylic
illustrations are full of energy. The boy runs and skips from one
adventurous goal to the next, accompanied by rabbits, frogs, and
other little creatures. His animal friends gaze at him through
the window of a homey kitchen in his future role as a
"mixing- licker." When he imagines being a "baby-sis
soother," the smiling child is dressed in an elephant costume,
and his sister laughs. In the end, on a four-page foldout, the
boy decides, "So many jobs!/They're all such fun—/I'm going to
choose…/EVERY ONE!" This outstanding book pairs well with Leonid
Gore's When I Grow Up (Scholastic, 2009) or Jeanie Franz Ransom's
What Do Parents Do? (…When You're Not Home) (Peachtree,
2007).—Linda L. Walkins, Saint Joseph Academy, Brighton, MA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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Spinelli takes the common theme of kids
wondering what to be when they grow up and gives it a charming
twist. In rhyming phrases a young boy considers: “When I grow up,
what shall I be? / Of all the many, many jobs, which one will be
the best for me? Pumpkin grower / dandelion blower / paper-plane
folder / puppy-dog holder.” Spinelli’s cunning touch is that all
of the possibilities are things a kid can do right now, without
having to go through all the pesky waiting of growing up. A
gatefold at the end provides the solution: he is going to choose
every one of them! The exuberant, larger-than-life
watercolor-and-acrylic illustrations evoke the whimsy of the
imagined scenarios and include a troupe of rabbits that appears
somewhere on each page. A simple concept wonderfully executed.
Preschool-Kindergarten. --Julie Cummins
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Review
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* "[An] uplifting, imaginative vision
of life's possibilities that suggests that there are no
limits--not even the sky."―Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Both the lilting text and amusing watercolor and acrylic
illustrations are full of energy....[A] marvelous story."―School
Library Journal
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About the Author
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Jerry Spinelli is the author of over
twenty-five immensely popular books for young readers, including
Eggs; Stargirl; Space Station Seventh Grade; Newbery Honor Book
Wringer; Maniac Magee, winner of more than fifteen state
children's book awards in addition to the Newbery Award; and the
picture books Mama Seeton's Whistle and I Can Be Anything! He
lives in Pennsylvania with his wife, Eileen.
When Jimmy Liao was little he wanted to be several things: a
painter, a magician, or a train driver. Eventually he became a
painter who tries to create magic with pictures. (And who
sometimes still dreams of being a train driver.) He is the author
and illustrator of over thirty-two books that have been
translated into nine languages worldwide. In a starred review,
Publishers Weekly called his first book with Little, Brown, The
Sound of Colors, "exuberant." He lives in Taipei, Taiwan with his
wife and daughter.
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