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Library | Item Barcode | Call Number | Material Type | Item Category 1 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... | 35000000004568 | PS648.C42 M73 1997 f | Open Access Book | Creative Book | Searching... |
Searching... | 30000010339535 | PS648.C42 M73 1997 f | Open Access Book | Creative Book | Searching... |
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Summary
Summary
The brother/sister team that created Napoleon now deliver the tale of poor Mr. Bumble, the clumsiest bee that ever buzzed When the queen announces the discovery of a distant clover patch, all the bees are thrilled--except for Mr. Bumble. How will he ever fly that far? Full color.
Reviews 2
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2Mr. Bumble, the clumsiest and most cowardly bee in the hive, always returns home from work with more dents in his bucket than pollen. When the Queen sends the bees on a mission to a newly discovered clover patch, Mr. Bumble is convinced that he will be captured by nasty monsters who will pluck "out his very wings." But when he reaches the clover patch, he finds friendly fairies who teach him the tricks of graceful flight and send him back to the Queen with a full bucket and a happy heart. Most of this odd story is written in prose, but rhyming words crop up here and there, giving the text an awkward rhythm. The acrylic paintings add to the overall strangeness, featuring slightly macabre bees and fairies with pale, pointy humanlike faces and bulbous bodies. Even the flowers have ghostly faces and bulging eyes peeking out from their petals. Mr. Bumble's transformation from clumsy to graceful comes off without a hitch and may leave young readers wondering why they can't overcome their own fears and shortcomings so easily.Dawn Amsberry, Oakland Public Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
A Victorian sensibility lends an air of enchantment to this story of a fumbling bumblebee. Mr. Bumble, with his tiny blue wings and Tweedle-Dum torso, is stouter than his fellow bees, and the hive is abuzz with jokes about his clumsy flying. On a mission to a clover patch (whose location is plotted on an appealing treasure map), Mr. Bumble lags behind his pollen-gathering peers. Luckily, in a particularly klutzy moment, he finds himself surrounded by round-bellied fairies, who take him under their wings and teach him to soar gracefully. Kim and Doug Kennedy (Napoleon), a sister and brother team from Louisiana, here create fantasy situations that evoke 19th-century fairy stories. Doug Kennedy's delicate acrylic paintings have the spirit of early animation with a touch of Oz: the bees, fairies and thin-stemmed flowers have human faces, and the dome of the beehive holds the Queen's golden throne room (lit by fireflies). Mr. Bumble's triumph is a given, but small details, like the fairies' book on flying in spirals and figure eights, add uncommon interest. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
