At the Hotel Larry

Rating:
Summary: pinkwater, hilarious as always
Review: At the Hotel Larry is just hilarious. Larry is a polar bear who has drifted from the polar regions to New Jersey. Pinkwater's trademark humor is in full effect. A great picture book for ages 3-103 !

Rating:
Summary: pinkwater, hilarious as always
Review: At the Hotel Larry is just hilarious. Larry is a polar bear who has drifted from the polar regions to New Jersey. Pinkwater's trademark humor is in full effect. A great picture book for ages 3-103 !

Rating:
Summary: Band of Bearthren
Review: Daniel and Jill Pinkwater have another winner in this book from the enormously funny "Larry" series. Larry is a huge but friendly polar bear who lives in a hotel and hangs out in the icy cold pool. This is a jokey-book, but even when the humor is predictable, the Pinkwaters' dry as ice delivery is irresistible: "NOTICE TO GUESTS: MAKE SURE THE BEAR LIKES YOU BEFORE USING THE POOL."

"...Guests ask [my mother] `How can we tell if the bear likes us?'
"...oh, the bear likes everybody."
Very few guests use the pool.

Later the narrator (a young teenage girl) takes a mildly disguised Larry out for blueberries: "people think he is just a big fat man with whiskers, wearing a pair of slippers that look like fuzzy bear paws." Then the rim-shot:

"If anyone were to ask I would say that Larry is my uncle from Milwaukee."

The one potentially tricky part of the book occurs when Larry takes his first trip to the zoo and sees his brother Roy. But the zoo is a fun place for them to meet and swim together and fool a few visitors as well. The zookeeper even lets Roy and his two pool mates out for the night, and they have codfish cakes and blueberries at the hotel Larry. Although I paused for a bit, the gentle good-natured tone drowns out any dissonance regarding free and captive polar bears: It's a kids' book, and the Pinkwaters' combination of deft prose, and bold, colorful pictures set a happy tone of fantasy and bearish camaraderie. Also check out Larry in "Bongo Larry," in which he eats (what else?) blueberries and plays the blues at a local club. Good fun, and definitely recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Band of Bearthren
Review: Daniel and Jill Pinkwater have another winner in this book from the enormously funny "Larry" series. Larry is a huge but friendly polar bear who lives in a hotel and hangs out in the icy cold pool. This is a jokey-book, but even when the humor is predictable, the Pinkwaters' dry as ice delivery is irresistible: "NOTICE TO GUESTS: MAKE SURE THE BEAR LIKES YOU BEFORE USING THE POOL."

"...Guests ask [my mother] 'How can we tell if the bear likes us?'
"...oh, the bear likes everybody."
Very few guests use the pool.

Later the narrator (a young teenage girl) takes a mildly disguised Larry out for blueberries: "people think he is just a big fat man with whiskers, wearing a pair of slippers that look like fuzzy bear paws." Then the rim-shot:

"If anyone were to ask I would say that Larry is my uncle from Milwaukee."

The one potentially tricky part of the book occurs when Larry takes his first trip to the zoo and sees his brother Roy. But the zoo is a fun place for them to meet and swim together and fool a few visitors as well. The zookeeper even lets Roy and his two pool mates out for the night, and they have codfish cakes and blueberries at the hotel Larry. Although I paused for a bit, the gentle good-natured tone drowns out any dissonance regarding free and captive polar bears: It's a kids' book, and the Pinkwaters' combination of deft prose, and bold, colorful pictures set a happy tone of fantasy and bearish camaraderie. Also check out Larry in "Bongo Larry," in which he eats (what else?) blueberries and plays the blues at a local club. Good fun, and definitely recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Funny and great to read aloud
Review: The narrator of this story is a girl who lives in a hotel with her father and mother. Larry, a polar bear, once saved her father's life, and as a reward, Larry wanted to live in a hotel with a swimming pool. So her father bought an old hotel, and Larry is the lifeguard. Every now and again, the girl disguises Larry in a very large coat, hat, and sunglasses, and they go to the Pancake Palace to eat blueberry pancakes. One day they go to the zoo, and I won't spoil the story by telling any more! The humor is wacky and sophisticated but will appeal to all ages.The style is simple and the book is fun to read because Larry is so clever and droll. I have read this book aloud countless of times to my 3-year-old. Larry has really captured the imagination of my son. Highly recommended for its humor and great illustrations.