Bink & Gollie: Two For One by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee. Candlewick Press, 2012. 75 pages.

 

REVIEW

Best friends Bink and Gollie are complete opposites in terms of appearance; they are kindred spirits, though, and readers will delight in sharing in their adventures at the state fair... Short, compact sentences make this book an ideal selection for beginning readers... Fucile employs an economical use of sketchy lines and splashes of color to capture facial expressions and emotions with spot-on accuracy. His artwork goes a long way in making this title the funny, touching book that it is. It would be no surprise if Bink and Gollie were to join the likes of Elephant and Piggie and Frog and Toad in the ranks of favorite friend duos.

—School Library Journal (starred review)

B&G again hit that sweet spot where picture books, graphic novels, and early readers converge... The book follows a satisfying trajectory from the first story’s slapstick through the second’s pathos to conclude with the affirmation of friendship in the third, and the blend of humor and sympathetic warmth buoys the story throughout. This endearing partnership remains a treat to follow, and readers will be as delighted as Bink and Gollie about the fortune-teller-certified long-term soundness of their friendship.

—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (starred review)

My Friend is Sad (Elephant and Piggie). Hyperion (2007), Hardcover, 58 pages

Gerald the elephant is sad and it's up to Piggie to cheer him up. He pretends to be a cowboy, a clown and a robot, but still Gerald is sad. In the end it seems that all Gerald needed to feel happy again was to be with his best friend, Piggie! Elephant and Piggie--A new series from Willems appealing to the very new reader with a quirky sense of humor...

Andy Shane and the Very Bossy Dolores Starbuckle by Jennifer Richard Jacobson. Candlewick (2005), Hardcover, 64 pages

Andy Shane begins to dread going to school because of the behavior of one block head--Dolores Starbuckle. Dolores torments Andy--she tells on him, she bosses him around, she corrects him, and is especially mean to him while he withers submissively and begs not to go to school. As in Henke's Chrysanthemum, this verbal harassment goes unchecked by the classroom teacher--who does not like it but fails to intervene. It is up to Granny Webb to help Andy regain his confidence.
While i enjoyed the much of the story and found the situation poor Andy found himself in very realistic, I was dissatisfied with the ending. Unlike Chrysanthemum, where the main character regains her confidence AND the bully gets a well deserved come uppence, Andy and Dolores become friends with no explanation and no mea culpas from the bully. Not a good lesson for either child. Still, a good chance to start some very important conversations with our children.