Vacations Books

I often glance at these reviews before ordering a book, but even more often I return to them after reading the book to compare my own response to those of other readers. I've never written a review myself, but I'm going to take a stab at how significant I think this novel is here. If you haven't read Hook, Line and & Homicide, and don't want to know "who done it," skip to the two other reviews posted before this date, for there will be spoilers here. Come back later and tell me what you think.

I've given the work five stars, although I have a "style" complaint. It's a matter of my own taste, others may not agree, and the author may may be deliberately trying for an effect. Zubro gets repetitive with overwhelming use of the word "said" in writing conversations -- the "saids" line up like soldiers at the start of short sentences on some pages, especially when he's questioning a witness or a suspect. It's a risk in writing scenes of interigotation in a mystery, of course, but it gives the story a wooden style, a literary equivalent to the dialogue of Jack Webb in TV's Dragnet. There are descriptive alternatives that will tell the reader who is speaking. My rewrite of an exchange between Paul Turner and his sons on page 3 cuts four and leaves in just the first "said" :

Jeff said, "He's gonna look weird if he doesn't have any fishing stuff."
Brian made a crosseyed face. "He enjoys being wierd"
Jeff gave him a smirk. "And he won't drive with us. He's flying in."
Paul continued to sort lures in his tackle box. "Teenagers and kids make him nervous."
Brian stopped laughing. "Don't most people make him nervous?"

-- This sort of approach helps us see what the characters are doing, as well as keep track of who's speaking. Zubro is wonderful at descriptions of exciting, even violent action (the several dangerous scenes involving boats on the Lake of the Woods are examples) but conversations are mostly said, said, said. But, I firmly believe that an author has the right to shape and define the world of his novel as he chooses and the reader is a visitor to that world. If the "saids" are a conscious stylistic choice of Zubro's to enhance the "investigatory" nature of mystery writing, I'll put up with them, for I thoroughly enjoy my visits to the world of both the Paul Turner series and the neighboring Tom and Scott series.

We're away from the usual setting of Chicago here. The other books in the two Chicago series have a resonance for me, having grown up at the end of the South Shore commuter rail line in the corner of Indiana that is part of "Chicagoland" and having graduated from Northwestern University a half century ago. (I am also a distant relative of the original owner of the Cubs.) Zubro places this story in foreign territory I know well, however, from frequently using International Falls as a crossing point into Canada as Paul's family does. "They drove west until they picked up Highway 71 going north." If they'd stopped at Ontario's most perfect campsite park, Caliper Lake, just a few miles up 71, they might not have run into Scarth Krohn.

All this brings up Zubro's addition of insult to the injuries that the Bush administration has done to US-Canadian relations. It certainly goes in the face of the popular belief that Canada is a country where everybody politely minds his own business and things run in an orderly fashion. I've had crisis situations with a suddenly ill parent in Victoria, an elderly friend who went "missing" in Stratford, and the challenges of shooting a documentary on the streets and in the nightclubs of wonderfully sexually promiscuous Windsor, and Canadian police have been understanding and helpful (and when issuing a speeding ticket in B.C.). The chief of police in Cathura, Ontario, is a stupid, self-serving, biggoted bully. But then, there actually isn't any such town, and if it's an hour west of Kenora, it would be in Manitoba, anyway. Zubro has created a fictional town and rearranged geography just a bit, so, for the sake of a good story, let him populate it with a few losers and undesirables. (I've tried to google his choice of "Cathura," come up with some vampire stuff that might make sense, but.. I can trace "significance" too far, my students used to protest.) He has an authentic "feel" for the pace of life in the Kenora region and the abrupt entrance into the wilderness that you make when you venture out of town, off the road, or to the otherside of the island ahead of you. The Canadian tourist office will just have to put up with the notion that evil people can happen, even in Canada.

And putting Paul Turner into a murder mystery in a foreign country, where his status as a US policeman is irrelevant, allows him the privilege of exercising his conscience when he discovers that it was Kevin who killed Scarth. Knowing that the local police cannot be trusted to recognize an obvious instance of self defense, Paul can trust his own moral judgment and place Kevin in the safe-keeping of Mrs. Talucci's brother and his life partner. The scene of Paul's rescue of the suicidal Kevin is emotionally charged for the reader, from the description of the physical action of pulling the boy out of the lake and giving CPR right down to the detail of the frightened and grief-stricken teenager drenching the shoulder of Paul's flannel shirt with "tears and snot." Having Paul perceive this detail and not give a damn about it is part of the compassion that Zubro instills in Paul's richly drawn character. The depiction of the elderly male partners/lovers who take Kevin into their establishment out beyond the reach of the corrupt police of Cathura has a "deus ex machina" feel to it, and their compound far across the lake reads like a "gay Mafia" setup, but their wealth appears to have come from their own years of strenuous and honest labor -- and I'm close to their age, live in semi-isolation on a lake in the forest, and wouldn't mind having a collection of well educated, efficient, handsome mid-twenties males at hand to keep danger at a distance (I don't think they'd need to be armed, and the pistols the Canadians pack are against the law). Actually, this discovery of the brother and his lifestyle is consistent with the outrageous role Mrs. Talucci has played in Paul Turner's family throughout this series of books. Turner intuitively turns to the elderly pair for help with Kevin, and by the end of the story other details have demonstrated to the reader that Kevin had no option other than to kill Scarth, that no one else will suffer because of Paul's coverup, and that Ontario officialdom may get things straightened out eventually in Cathura.

The two other reviewers I've read have slightly complained about Paul's preachments about matters of gay rights and gay safety. They're brief, and I believe they are justified. He's certainly not wrong in suggesting that a Matthew Shepard incident could have happened in the Cathura environment. What's wrong with a touch of relevance?

Paul Turner is an exemplary man, not without flaw, but consciously striving to live up to intelligently formulated standards in his roles as policeman, citizen, and father. Zubro is especially effective in dealing with Paul's behavior with his boys, one confined to a wheelchair, the other intelligently working to define himself on the brink of manhood. When Paul unexpectedly finds Brian at a campfire on the lakeshore, just at the outset of activities that will lead to sexual contact with the teenage fishing guide Kevin, Paul slips off into the dark in his rowboat, trusting his son and the Canadian boy -- and taking the reader as well as himself away from the boys' privacy. It is not until Brian brings the subject up himself that Paul reminds Brian that he had said he was "going to the movies." There's no recrimination, no arguing, no laying on of guilt. They have a very simple discussion of how and why the lovemaking happened, what it meant to each of the boys, and that it was "more friendly and very safe. I do actually listen to you." It's a wonderful scene, obviously offered by Zubro as proof that Paul Turner's parenting skills are successful.

At one point in the scene, Brian is concerned that "I've never known somebody who committed a murder. He was a friend. Is a friend." The shift in tense at the end is a significant display of Brian's maturity and loyalty, but I wish Turner had corrected the boy about the use of the word "murder." I would have had Turner interject, "There's a distinction betweeen 'murder' and 'self defense', Brian. We know beyond any doubt that what Kevin did was not 'murder'." That is, after all, what the moral center of the novel is all about.

Given Brian's state of mind at the end of the story, I wish that he had been given a final scene with Kevin, although I wouldn't have described it for the reader. Phil, the handsome pilot of the cigarette boat, should again appear unexpectedly at the Turner's dock on the final day, but without Mrs. Talucci. This frightens Turner (the old girl is past 90), but Phil explains that Mrs. Talucci believes that Kevin and Brian should have an opportunity to talk before the Turner family leaves Canada and has sent Phil to fetch him to her brother's compound. Turner says that he'll get the boy and Phil can take them back across the lake. Phil says, "Mrs. Talucci says Brian should come by himself." Although Zubro does not have Paul narrate these stories, they are told in a way that is limited to his point of view. I would have Brian come back later with Mrs. Talucci to begin the trip home, keeping whatever transpired in the conversation with Kevin to himself. Paul would be perplexed, but his (I think wonderful) parenting style would once again respect his son's privacy. The reader's imagination can be tested for a while, and the fact that such a conversation had happened would bring added significance to the conversation between Brian and Paul that ends the novel.

Something else I would like to find in the novel is more complete use of Ben as Paul's partner, something more than a "babysitter" for the boys when Paul must be elsewhere. In the other Zubro series, Tom and Scott function as companions in crime solving, but they're both amateurs, and in this series, Paul is the "pro" and has Fenwick as a partner. But couldn't Paul two/three times in a novel crawl in to Ben's arms, stew about a problem, and get an insight that is at least part of the key to solving the case?

Something outside the perameters of this novel -- What happens to Kevin? Brian wants to be sure to come back next year to see Kevin again, but I'd like to see how that handsome mid-twenties Phil, with whom Kevin very quickly turned to helping with maintenance of the cigarette boat upon their arrival at the "gay mafia" compound, takes on the responsibility of helping Kevin heal from not only the self-defense killing but also the years of Scarth's rapes. There's tremendous story-telling opportunity here (but, it's outside the perview of Zubro's mysteries) and in my fantasies is already connected to Brian's state of mind when he returns from the visit I want him to have with Kevin on the last day -- Brian knows and is completely relieved at just how safe his friend is over on that island.

To end this -- Paul's decision to involve his family and friends in withholding "evidence" (making them the jury and himself the judge) despite his professional committment to upholding law and legal procedures, plus the questions that might be raised about Brian's experimentation with sex and Kevin (which I have barely suggested), and the exercise of Paul Turner's compassionate, wise parenting skills -- come together to make "Hook, Line & Homicide" a much more complicated and rewarding reading experience than just yet another gay murder mystery. I hate the thought of "using" a good read to "teach" something, yet questions of "what defines gay?" "what defines murder, rape, bullying, bigotry, stupidity, responsibilityl, etc?" "what defines friendship?"
"what defines being a good parent?" so abound in this simple, straight forward story (but do not overburden it) that I wish I had a group of slightly confused teenagers to read it with, hash out its issues, and get us all back on track. But I'd settle for the (not armed) mid-twenties on the property seeing that things keep operating smoothly.

Chicago police detective Paul Turner rents two houseboats on Lake of the Woods, Canada for his annual fishing trip. Accompanying Paul are his sons teen Brian and preadolescent Jeff, his significant other Ben, his CPD partner Buck Fenwick and his wife and their children.

Paul breaks up a fight between the Krohn's gang and five First Nation Canadian Indian kids caused by the bullying tactics of the former. However when he reports that the Krohn crowd caused the incident as the Indians were minding their business to the police, they ignore him insisting that the First Nation people always cause trouble. Soon afterward the Krohn gang harasses the "fags" renting the houseboat. Not long after that someone murders Krohn. Police Chief Shreppel arrests a First Nation's teen without any evidence except prejudice and hatred. Putting aside their rods and reels, Paul and Buck investigate as they know the homophobic racist cops will not.

HOOK, LINE & HOMICIDE is an interesting whodunit as the Chicago cops are outside their jurisdiction investigating a homicide that the local Canadian police prefer their solution. The assault on gay rights by government and so called family value gurus is given a personalized face especially when Jeff personalizes the venom as he cannot understand why his father is hated due to sexual preference. Although at times Paul can pontificate on racism, sexual preference harassment slowing the sleuthing story line down, fans of the series will appreciate the latest caper north of the border.

Harriet Klausner

It's vacation time, and - as in past years - Chicago police detective Paul Turner is heading up to rural Canada to do some fishing, with his life partner, Ben, his two boys Brian and Jeff, along with his precinct partner Buck Fenwick, his wife and girls. Coming along this year are Ian, Turner's ex who is now a journalist, and Mrs. Talucci, an elderly but feisty neighbor whom the boys consider a surrogate grandmother.

They barely get a chance to get settled in their houseboats, and they find a dead body washing up on shore, whom they recognize as the leader of a group of local punks who harrassed them on their day of arrival. When Ian finds out that this is the sixth young man to die in so many years, he starts nosing around town to see if there is a story to be written, which arouses the suspicion of the local egotistical police chief. Turner and Fenwick start to do some investigating on their own, and discover this seemingly quiet town has its own surprising secrets, including police corruption, prostitution, racism, homophobia, drugs, and even a small-time gay porn producer, as well as a mysterious benefactor on a distant island with whom Mrs. Talucci spends her time.

As has been the case with his 19 previous mystery novels (11 in the "Tom & Scott" series, with this being the 9th of the "Paul Turner" series), Zubro spins a creative and realistic mystery yarn that immediately and skillfully engages the reader's interest and curiousity. His best quality is his knack for pacing, feeding the reader little tidbits at a time, and that is also evident here, although he occasionally gets a bit verbose in having Turner dwell on lectures about homophobia or racism. A minor fault, in my opinion, and I still give it five stars out of five.

Steven Jones loves his Aunt Carolyn. She travels all around the world and always send him postcards from the places that dhe travels. His aunt promises Steven that when he is old enough he can go on a trip with her. He can't wait for that day! His aunt is coming home for a visit and he wants to give her the perfect gift. He only has $10.00 and can't find anything good enough for her. He decides to redo an old toy train with pictures of his family as his gift. His aunt and the rest of the family love the "Jones Family Express"! At the end of her visit Aunt Carolyn gives Steven a postcard. The postacard is inviting him on a trip with her!


The illustrations are done is collage style. They are fun to look at and keep the reader interested in the story.


The book would make a great read aloud to children during a unit on trains, travel and family.

The Jones Family Express is a warm-hearted picture book written by Javaka Steptoe. His engaging text is uniquely brought to life with full-color illustrations of paper collages. In The Jones Family Express, Steven is a young African-American boy who is stumped trying to think of the perfect gift for his beloved, globe-traveling Aunt Carolyn during the annual block party. Steven learns that the best gifts of all come from the heart, in this emotional and highly recommended picture book story for young readers ages 4 to 9.

There aren't many picture books out there that contain illustrations where the main character and his brother are seen protecting their delicious pancake breakfasts from a voracious hungry uncle. "The Jones Family Express" is one of the few. Which is to say, it's the rare book that shows family relations in a realistic, yet affectionate, way. Javaka Steptoe has a style and voice that is uniquely his own. In this particular book, he creates a living breathing urban family environment, the like of which has not been seen since the heyday of those marvelous Ezra Jack Keats stories. Here we have a great story, in an innovative package.

Steven awaits, with baited breath, the postcards his world traveling aunt sends him whenever she goes away. For years he's lived through Aunt Carolyn's adventures second-hand, and at long long last she's coming to visit her favorite nephew and his family. That means it's time to party. While the rest of his family prepares for a delicious street barbecue, Steven frets over finding his aunt the perfect welcome-home gift. When at last he enlists the help of his money-happy Uncle Charles ("he wouldn't do anything unless you paid him") he finds a present that his aunt can truly love for all time. And in the end, Aunt Carolyn gives Steven the one thing he's always wanted.

I was pleased with the arc of the story, especially the wide range of characters brought to vivid life through Steptoe's descriptions. There's Steven's little cousin Sean who keeps him awake at night with questions like, "Why do dogs like dog biscuits?". There's Mr. Perkins, owner of Perkins Drugstore, with a voice like nails scratching on a chalkboard. And unlike some other kid-tries-to-find-the-perfect-present-for-their-beloved-relative/friend/idol, the gift that Steven actually comes up with is truly something that any adult belonging to a large family would love to own.

Steptoe's cut paper and mixed-media collage is the real star of this show, though. Cut paper, when done well, takes disparate elements and forces them to be complimentary to one another. In this particular case, Steptoe knows how to throw real photographs in with his drawn faces and cut out people, and meld them together with apparent ease. The people in this book grimace, smile, scowl, and sigh with delightful results. The whole reason to read the book, though, is centered on a magnificent two-page spread of Aunt Carolyn's hands holding her newly unwrapped present. If you read nothing else in this book, find that spread and tell me if it isn't fabulous (her hands are actual size, which makes the image particularly stunning).

Is it great? Yep. Should you give it to your children? Yep. Can I come up with a single reason why anyone wouldn't like it? I dunno. It's a little wordy for younger children. But for those kids who can sit through a well-told story and enjoy what it has to say, few things could go down sweeter than the pleasant, "Jones Family Express".

I used this with my Rough Guide italy, they certainly had different takes on various towns, sometimes this was more in line with my thinking. I was hoping to use this to find cheap hotels, since Rough Guide is weak on that. But the hotels were not as cheap as published, by the end of the trip I was using the tourist information booths with better results.

The Let's Go series is the best travel books on the market. If you are a younger person say 30 and under, this is the book for you. Woven throughout the book are helpful tips. Color Maps of various cities in the front of the book. I have been able to make sound decisions on where to stay, how to get around, and where to buy tickets/passes.

There is so much interesting detail about Italy in this book that can be found no where else. The information about lodgings, travel, food, etc is invaluable. The hotels are reasonable(I don't want to make a down payment, I just want to rent a clean room for a little sleep). It makes me want to take a trip there, and I plan to. I'm quite old but it makes me feel comfortable about going by myself.

This book is a great story for any children who are attached to a stuffed animal, blanket, etc.

my 2 year old daughter is always excited about how mum & dad & the sun fix Louies`s goose, cute story & pct.

A good childrens' book, excellent for reading to pre-school aged children. The text can easily be understood by the 3 and 4 year olds in my library story hour as they identify with Louie and his most favorite stuffed animal, a red goose. The illustrations are great!

This is a great book for daydreamers as well as a great sourcebook of ideas if you want to add a touch of Med-Style to your home. It has great pictures (really great photography!!) with nice descriptive and often inspiring text by the author about the 22 homes of famous people like Pierre Cardin, Miguel Servera and Armani. If you look at the names you can also feel that this is not about the little cottages of the region, but some luxurious villas and mansions of these millionaires. But the book still gives you a great feel of the style and it does have really tasty interiors and gardens from all around the coast. I recommend it!!

This book is exellent for those that are looking to give their live style the mediterranean touch, from room decoration to architectural desing, from colors of the sea to earth tones. If you are looking for a book that gives you the feeling of being somewhere else, or that inspires you to change or update your current surrondings, this is the book.

Well, this is a beautiful book but the reason I purchased it was in hopes that it would give me some do-able Mediterranean-style decorating ideas. As I said, it contains amazing pictures but primarily of very authentic - old - mediterranean homes and mostly not something that I was looking to have in my home. I am not claiming that I was misled in anyway, I just wanted to provide this comment for future buyers who might have been thinking the same things I was...

Mrs. Jeeper's Batty
Vaction!
This book is Fiction, It is called Mrs. Jeepers Batty Vaction. This book is all about 4 kids thinking that Mrs. Jeepers's family is vampires. The characters are Howie, Liza, Eddie, Melody. It is also about them going to Transylvania to visit to see Mrs.jeepers family. They were running from the family all the time cause they were so scared. One more thing about the summary howie is the main character in this book. That was the summary.



Howie's description is okay. He has brown eyes, the color of his hair is light blond, He thinks he's the boss of everything and everybody his friends do not like that. He thiks he is king or something. Me and him are the same in one way that way is I have brown eyes to. We are different to I don't think I am king or be Bossy. That was howies's description and his personality and comparson.

I really liked this book. I was interesting to read, because I like to read about stories that you think something is going to happen. My favorite or best part in here is when Howie, Eddie ,Liza and Melody was running away from Mrs. Jeppers's brother Boris and said oh look vampire bat theeth is coming. I would not recommend this book to a friend cause they d double of o not like witchcraft. I also liked when Howie said I think I am seeing double of Mrs.jeepers one is enough I don't call that a VACTION !

I liked the book because it was a hair raising story. It was the best book I have read out of the super specials. I liked when the kids were on the plane to Transylvania because the kids thought Mrs. Jeppers was a vampire and she was going to suck their blood until they were nothing but skin and bones. I also liked when they were in Transylvainia and they saw a secret passage that went to Melody and Liza's room. Melody and Liza started hitting Eddie and Howie on the head with pillows. That was funny I liked the book alot!!!

My name is Leigh and I liked the part when they met Uncle Boris, and Mrs. Jeepers said, "The only time when you have to beware of Uncle Boris is when he's hungry." And they all got scared because they thought he was going to bite them on the neck.

WG Eggleton keeps you guessing up to the last minute with this fast-paced murder mystery. The characters are well developed and realistic - you may think you've met some of them before, wherever you work . This book is one of those that's hard to put down - great to curl up with in front of the fire on a chilly day!

Murder Makes Mischief

Enjoyed the twists and turns at the CIBC office. Sex, money and murder all shuffle together at a fast moving pace and kept me turning the pages to find out if my hunches were right about who was smart enough to almost get away with the perfect poisioning.

W.G. Eggleton's debut novel Murder Makes Mischief is a great comical caper, reminiscent of murder mystery who-dunnits from the past. It's the classic board game Clue meets Agatha Christie meets Fawlty Towers, and a humorous take on the money-hungry world of banking.

When a body turns up dead--poisoned--at a bank in Victoria, BC, two police detectives uncover that there is more to the employees that work there. Every single one of them seems to have motive. And Eggleton's novel reveals that there is more to the finance world than just money. There are also deadly little secrets, and someone has made a permanent `withdrawal'. As the body count mounts, the suspects are gathered in the proverbial `drawing room' in one final attempt to flush out a murderer.

Murder Makes Mischief is a bit weak on editing, but I did not find it detracts much from the story, which has unique character development, crisp pacing, enough red herrings to feed a vault of bankers, and inventive plotting. Well done!

~ Cheryl Kaye Tardif, author of The River, Divine Intervention and Whale Song
Whale Song: A Novel
Divine Intervention
The River

I LOVED this book before I knew who wrote it. It is very cleverly written, with humorous touches for both adults and children. Sonia Manzano writes the way a girl of 6 or 7 would think. We love all the wonderful characters and the way they are described and depicted. Jon J. Muth's pictures are the perfect compliment. I have admired so much of his other work. Whatever editor decided to pair these two together is a genius!

Every parent who I tell about this book or show it to also enjoys it. Although the reading age is listed as 4-8, my 2.5-year-old LOVES this book--it is one of her favorites as well as a favorite of my husband and me. Other parents who read with their kids often will agree that sometimes, no matter how great the book, you just get tired of it ("You want to read this one AGAIN?!?!")--that has not happened yet with _No Dogs Allowed_.

And yes, I am a big fan of Manzano's Sesame Street work. I was in the first generation of kids to grow up with Sesame Street and loved it from the start. Sesame Street gave me friends for life. In college I watched Maria and Luis get married, and later give birth to their daughter. (I should add that many of my fellow college students watched also.)

But this book stands separate from Sesame Street--it does not need a Sesame Street connection to be the superb children's literature it is. I encourage all readers to go find out for yourselves how wonderful a treat this book is--Enjoy!

Bear with me here. When I was three-years-old I enjoyed listening to showtunes. "Annie", "Jesus Christ Superstar", "Peter Pan", that sort of thing. One day, I was planted firmly on the carpet listening to a cast recording of "Godspell". According to my mother (who has far clearer memories of this event than I do) I apparently I tried to draw her attention to the fact that Maria from Sesame Street was singing a song. Mom patiently attempted to explain to me that I wasn't listening to my Sesame Street record. I was listening to "Godspell". As it happens, I was right. Sure enough, Sonia Manzano can be heard putting on some mighty slinky moves in that crowd pleaser of a song, "Turn Back Oh Man". My point here is that even from a very young age I could pick out Sonia Manzano's voice in unfamiliar places. And now, at the ripe old age of twenty-seven, I am delighted to point her out yet again in the unfamiliar world of picture book publishing. To be honest, Ms. Manzano's first children's book, "No Dogs Allowed" is not the most interesting book of its kind. It would not read aloud well to large groups of kids nor will all children find it interesting. That said, I'm (as you might be able to tell) heavily biased towards Ms. Manzano and she could probably blindfold herself and randomly slap keys on a keyboard and I'd declare the result brilliant. Even though I cannot wholeheartedly recommend this book to every person in the world, I do recommend it to you. Because it's by Maria, and I love her very much.

Iris has, what you might call, a large extended family. Her immediate family consists of her Papi the Clever, Mami the Busy, sister Shorty the Fortune-teller (being a teenager Shorty tells the future by rolling her eyes and saying, "I told you so" after the fact), and El Exigente the perpetually sleeping dog. There's also cousin Carmen the beautiful, Marta the Smart, Tuta and Juan the newly married couple, Don Joe the Grocer, and a pack of Wise Old People who play a game of dominoes, ("they started one hundred years ago when they were young in Puerto Rico"). Whew! Got everybody? Good, because everybody's going to the beach. Bringing along their various accoutrements, the caravan of cars proceeds to go to the lake in the Enchanted State Park. After various mishaps and breakdowns everyone makes it BUT there's a problem. A "No Dogs Allowed" on the beach problem. No one can figure out what to do, but while they're thinking they decides to relax on the sand and take turns watching El Exigente in the parking lot. By the end of the day, "we never DID figure out what to do", but it hardly matters anymore. Everyone had a good time and it's back home they go after a long and eventful day.

The story is cute, very New York, and seems by the clothing and the cars to take place in the early to mid-nineteen sixties. Manzano keeps the action clipping along and puts in enough gentle jokes and family connections to appeal to grown-up readers. The illustrations are by the greatly accomplished why-has-this-man-not-won-a-Caldecott-yet illustrator Jon J. Muth of "Gershon's Monster" fame. Muth has picked up the flavor of the book and gives each eccentric his due. Whether you're watching the permanently lip-locked newly married couple grope, cousin Carmen the Beautiful strut, or El Exigente don glasses and a grey felt hat to play some dominoes, you're gonna like these pictures. The watercolors are lush, the details intricate, and the pen-and-ink meticulous. I did have to wonder if Muth was once a Sesame Street watcher himself. The Papi in the family apparently knows how to fix toasters. Hmmmm....

Now, the problem comes when you first meet the extended family. If you read my description of the plot and found yourself thinking that the number of characters was a little excessive, you're not far off. The book gets a little bogged down with the constant references to the large group and though it will obviously be much beloved after a second or third reading, it's that first one that really counts. If the large group was introduced right from the get-go, it might be another matter, but they first appear when Iris explains who is coming on the trip. The logical question of "Why?", remains unanswered. It's ridiculous without the whimsy required in picture book surrealism.

Nonetheless, it's hard to fault a book that looks and feels so nice. Even if the child you present this to doesn't happen to enjoy, "No Dogs Allowed", this is not to say that another child won't. Definitely take it for a spin before making a hasty purchase. Ms. Manzano has a nice literary voice here. I can only hope that it spins us a couple more yarns in the years to come. In fact, I'd be much obliged.

Sonia Manzano makes magic out of the un-urbane urban life in "No Dogs Allowed." She brings her years of experience enchanting ordinary city living straight from Sesame Street, where she has won 15 Emmys as a staff writer and played the role of Maria for over 30 years.
In her first attempt at children's literature, Manzano continues to represent Latinas as strong, creative individuals with her main character, Iris. But the story line also gives Manzano the opportunity to study many of the other diverse characters that fill Iris' life.
Recounted in the first person by Iris, the tale, at times, compels the reader to sing, "These are the people in her neighborhood, in her neighborhood..." Well, at least for this reader.
The plot is simple: Iris' extended family, along with a dozen of their closest friends, and the grocer, head to the beach at Enchanted Lake for a picnic.
But, along the way, they encounter logistical complications. They get lost and cars break down. Luckily, the caravan brings a copious supply of food, books, and love to keep them occupied on their long journey. Iris entertains herself by playing with her dog, El Exigente.
Although spirits remain undamped by the challenges the group gallantly engages, a single sign casts a dark cloud over what should have been a picture-perfect picnic: "NO DOGS ALLOWED."
Not to worry. Teamwork and a little ingenuity save the day and a good time is had by all, including the dog, the one being read to and the reader.

Manzano's characters - while oversimplified conventions with names like Mami the Busy and Carmen the Beautiful - are familiar and full of life.
The illustrations by Jon Muth capture the chaos and beauty of family outings, exaggerating the discord of it all. A fine balance is created by his strong, distinct pen and soft water colors. At times his work, the penultimate depiction showing a panoramic view of a sunset, for example, is surprisingly poignant and hauntingly beautiful.
Animated, vigorous, and fun, "No Dogs Allowed" is a comforting story set in a mixed up world, appropriate for these uncertain times.

This story gives us the D's and the Amazons together in their own tale.





Dick and Dot Callum have come to the Blackett home, to stay with their friends Nancy and Peggy, aka the Amazons. Things are a little odd; Mrs. Blackett is away on a Scandinavian cruise (recovering from a bad bout of the flu) and her brother Jim (nicknamed "Captain Flint" by the kids) is with her. The children are to be watched over by the household servants and Jim's friend and business partner Timothy (surely not a situation to be condoned today!). But the Blackett's great-aunt, whom series fans will remember from previous volumes, gets wind of the mother's absence and is quickly on her way to oversee things.





This is simply unacceptable! The children look for a solution, and finally find one worthy of an "I Love Lucy" episode: until the Great-Aunt leaves and Mrs. Blackett returns, the D's will hide out in a nearby abandoned hut, still in good shape, and the Amazons will have to act like proper little ladies until Mother returns.





Quite a bit is spent on the D's learning to cope for themselves, with the help of a local farm boy. The D's are more intellectual than physical (Dick is an analytical naturalist, Dot is a dreamy would-be novelist), but they quickly learn to deal with life in the wild. But when they have to get some of Jim's chemical equipment from the house, and then the Great-Aunt disappears, things start getting out of hand....





This is an amusing tale, perhaps one of the more comic of the series. This one brings back the infamous Great-Aunt, an ogre of previous novels, but this time Ransome treats her with more depth and compassion. Instead of simply being an ill-tempered fussy brute, we see her as a woman shaped by her times and circumstances, trying to do what she thinks is right and do well by her family. As a reader, I certainly can't blame her for wanting to be sure the children were propery watched over, although I could emphasize with the kids' desire to have their usual freedom back.





As always, all ends well, and the reader is left with a sense of a growing understanding between the Great-Aunt and the Amazons, and some mutual respect.





As always, the feel of rural England in the 30s is part of the fun of the novel, and the adventures of the D's as they grow in self-confidence and self-reliance, handling their own boat and cooking their own meals.





Coming up next: A last hurrah for the gang in GREAT NORTHERN?

When Dick and Dot arrive in the lake country they are expecting a pleasant visit with friends while learning how to sail their very own boat. But things never work out as planned, especially when Nancy has a hand in things -- first thing anyone knows she has Dick and Dot living in hiding from "the Great Aunt" and everybody else reluctantly in on the secret that must not be found out.

This is a charming book telling of a simpler time, yet it manages to be adventurous and exciting, too. Perfect for all ages, even my 4 year old enjoys listening to these novels.

It's hard to pick a favorite -- all the Swallows and Amazon books are good, and I'm sure everybody has their own favorite -- but I particularly like the character of the Great Aunt in this book. She is so...PROPER and so...INTIMIDATING, and the interactions the other characters have with her make for a good story. There is plenty of intrigue, plenty of almost-crisis, plenty of devious scheming by Nancy & crew to subvert the tyranny of the Great Aunt so they can achieve their own goals.

I have spent the last 15 yrs or so trying to remember the title of this book. I read it over and over. All I could recall is a girl being alone in NYC and a big floppy hat and Woody Allen. It's one of those books that when I think of being young i remember. It's great.

I read this back in grade school many many moons ago and have been looking for it ever since. It is prefect for pre-teen and teen girls, showing them values and what the world will challenge them. I will share this with my own girls when they are older. A good book for moms and daughters to start a book club or dialogue with!!

I read this story while living in a remote fishing village in Nova Scotia.I loved the fact that the main character wanted to live on her own in New York City and was bummed about her little sister getting all the attention in the family.Her adventures amused me and the lessons she learns in the end were inspiring.I read this book so many times the whole book fell apart!I would love to have a copy now to see if I still enjoy it.It was my all time favorite book as a teen.