Buz (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition)

Kindergarten-Grade 2?One morning, a boy eats a bug along with his cornflakes. As the brief narrative unfolds, viewers glimpse the creature's journey through the boy's body, the doctor's confirmation of the presence of a "bug," and the cops-and-robbers-like chase by the bumbling pills. Egielski makes effective use of double-page close-ups, interior and exterior perspectives, and page layout to build suspense and heighten dramatic impact. The pictures work well from a distance, so groups will enjoy them. The palette changes from fleshy pinks to shadowy blues as Buz moves away from the source of light. An abundance of white highlights on the pills and Buz creates the same shiny look used by the illustrator in Pam Conrad's The Tub People (HarperCollins, 1989), giving the characters a toylike quality. The little creature escapes, but not without catching?a germ. Guess what the doctor prescribes? This is probably not a title one will read again and again, but it is clever enough the first time through. Use it with Chris Van Allsburg's Two Bad Ants (Houghton, 1988) to portray unusual adventures from out-of-the-ordinary perspectives.?Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.