Reviews: (by author)

(2 Reviews)

Lois Lenski. Now It Is Fall. I Like Winter. New York: Random House, 2000. $9.95 each.
Now It Is Fall ISBN 0-375-81069-2
I Like Winter ISBN 0-375-81068-4

These tiny, unpretentious books of clumsy verses and bright, not to say kitschy, pictures may appeal more to nostalgic grandparents than today's young children. First published in 1948 and 1950, respectively, they feel rather outdated, especially compared to other picturebooks by Lois Lenski, The Little Fire Engine and The Little Train, also reprinted by Random House, that still hold their charm. The prize-winning author and illustrator Lois Lenski wrote over ninety books; perhaps the publishers should be more selective before bringing them out for today's young audience.

Reviewed by Maria Nikolajeva

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Lois Lenski. The Little Fire Engine. The Little Train. New York: Random House, 2000. $13.95 each.
The Little Fire Engine ISBN 0-375-81070-6
The Little Train ISBN 0-375-81071-4

These are reprints of two classic American picturebooks from the 1940s, telling simple and concrete stories of the everyday: how a fire engine is used and how a train works. The machines are not animated, but they are surely presented as men's good friends - naturally, in books from that period there are no female firemen or engine drivers. For today's child it may seem strange to see pictures of coal being loaded into the tender; here is a good chance for the adult to share the book with the child.

Reviewed by Maria Nikolajeva