Julius (Preschool)

Rating:
Summary: Julius, piggy of the world
Review: Before Dav Pilkey's "Captain Underpants" won the hearts and minds of children everywhere and before Angela Johnson won the 2003 Printz honor for her remarkable book, "First Part Last", the two combined their unique talents for the unusual tale, "Julius". The story is a slapdash combination served up in a range of colorful motifs. In this tale, a young African-American girl's grandfather sends her a gigantic pig named Julius from Alaska. Julius is rambunctious to say the least. Though her parents aren't initially fond of the messy (and oh so slightly obnoxious) pig, they keep him because their daughter Maya loves him so. Pilkey has combined a variety of different drawing styles to keep the illustrations in this tale interesting. Fabric is used on almost every page as borders, wallpaper, clothing, suitcases, etc. There's even a lovely patched together opening spread of Maya and Julius as quilted figures tromping through the flowers. What Johnson has written in this charming tale is matched perfectly by Pilkey's wry flourishes that crop up here and there. The angry glares Maya's parents shoot the slightly cowed grandfather when they realize they now own a pig is priceless. Maya herself is so full of life and verve that you want to take lessons from her. In some pictures she sports a colorful sombrero. In others, she's in pearls and white gloves (while Julius doffs 3-D glasses). No child reading this wouldn't want a gigantic pig of their own. No adult would want to keep it from them.

Rating:
Summary: Julius is jazzy
Review: Julius is a very unconventional pig who loves jazz music, dressing up, and eating peanut butter out of the jar. Maya teaches Julius manners, which he reluctantly learns, then later uses because he loves Maya. It's a fun, non-whimsical and non-preachy story of friendship. Kids 'get' the moral (bringing out the best in your friend by loving them and sharing your own interests with them) without being hit over the head with it. The excellent facial expressions (esp on the parents' faces) really tell the story.

The illustrations are very engaging -- brightly patterned bits of cloth, some creative distortion of perspective, etc. The African-American family looks like it was modeled on real, living individuals -- a refreshing change from the generic white-person-colored-black look.

This is a great picture book for those of you who are tired of the pastel world of books for the under-7 set.

Rating:
Summary: Fun and imaginative!
Review: My kids and I loved this book from the first time we read it. My kids are teenagers now, but I still recommend this book to new parents. I fell in love with Julius and he still brings a smile to my face, when I think of him trying on clothes, and listening to Jazz music! Since there are so few whimsical stories about and for African American children, this book is a real treasure. Thank You Ms. Johnson.