Sailing Away

Comfort can be found and felt in the smallest of things.  The smell of bayberry candles reminds me of my Dad's smile and laughter; it was his favorite scent. The taste of hot chocolate reminds me of all those mornings counting the bubbles on top of a fresh hot mug; each representing a monetary amount.  The sight of Xena lying at my feet as I write and read reminds me of the countless hours we've spent walking and running.

Children find solace in a favorite blanket, stuffed animal, story or in the company of those who love them; as we all do.  In this third tale, Willy continues to find companionship with Bobo, his sock monkey.  Earl, the family cat, is never far behind, ready to steal Bobo away.  The entertaining trio is off on another adventure in Bobo The Sailor Man! (Atheneum Books For Young Readers) written by Eileen Rosenthal with illustrations by Marc Rosenthal.

This morning Willy woke up with a plan.

Not only is Willy taking Bobo exploring but he has BIG ideas.  The exuberance of Willy is contagious; knowing they might uncover dinosaur bones or, as improbable as it might be, a volcano.  With Willy and company a patch of mushrooms is not just a patch of mushrooms; they must be poisonous.

Each new item, acorns, a caterpillar, a stick, and a forgotten comb, are discovered treasures.  Their place in the world is elevated by Willy's imagination.  Cloud gazing reveals a menagerie of creatures past and present.

An abandoned pail by a nearby river, sends the ever present and most willing, Bobo on an unexpected voyage.  Willy can't run fast enough and the rocks are far too slippery to get Bobo back.  With a stern command to Earl to watch over Bobo, (as if he is not always doing so anyway), Willy runs off to get help.

What we see and Willy fails to see, will have readers giggling to their hearts' content.  Who's the rescuer and rescued?  Water trips, sailor hats and afternoon naps tell the tale.  And Earl...let's say he has the last laugh...again.

In each story Eileen Rosenthal, has created characters we want for friends.  The persistence and determination of Earl are to be admired.  No one would ever have a bad day with Willy's zest for life, his optimism, and his willingness to find joy at every opportunity.  Told entirely in Willy's conversations and thoughts, except for the first sentence, we can easily place ourselves in the middle of the action.

Bright yellow on the matching jacket and cover immediately attracts the viewer to the latest installment in the adventures of Willy, Bobo and Earl.  The contrasting vibrant red text, pail and boots hint at events to come.  As in the two previous titles, the back features Willy, clad in his pajamas, intent on his next undertaking, holding Bobo as he and Earl gaze out a window.

Plain pale yellow covers the opening and closing endpapers, with one exception.  In the lower right-hand corner of the beginning sits a tiny newspaper sailor hat.  Like the other two titles, the verso information takes on a specific shape.  This time it forms a pail.  

Drawn in pencil and colored digitally, Marc Rosenthal infuses each illustration with lively emotion.  For the most part chocolate brown lines define the settings with color filling in the characters and those elements specific to the narrative.  Text size accentuates the emotions flowing around several small illustrations on a page, single page pictures or the expressive double page spreads.  I think my favorite two pages are a series of six small pictures of Bobo's rescue.  I can't look at them without smiling.

The wife and husband team of Eileen Rosenthal and Marc Rosenthal have created another lighthearted winner in Bobo The Sailor Man!  Whether shared one-on-one or in a group setting, readers will fall in love all over again with these characters.  I would even venture to say, there might be more requests for lovable sock monkeys this Christmas season.  Bobo dressed in his bumblebee black and yellow is hard to resist.

If you want to discover more about the author and illustrator please follow the link embedded in their names to access their official websites.  Here is a link to the Simon & Schuster website for a look at more pages from the title.  It includes four activity pages to extend the fun of Willy and his friends. Here are links to my reviews of I Must Have Bobo! and I'll Save You Bobo!  For more sock monkey fun I would pair this with the series by author Cece Bell and Emily Gravett's book, Monkey and Me.

The Wait Is Over...The Plot Thickens

The intrepid trio is back.  And I couldn't be happier. When we first met Willy, Bobo and Earl in I Must Have Bobo!(Atheneum Books For Young Readers) by Eileen Rosenthal, illustrated by Marc Rosenthal, I could hardly wait for this next installment.

As in the first book, it is crystal clear in I'll Save You Bobo! (Atheneum Books For Young Readers) wherever Bobo is, Earl is close at hand and wherever Willy is, Bobo is next to him or nearby.

WILLY IS HAVING A HARD TIME READING...
GO AWAY, EARL.

In typical fashion Earl is trying to weasel Bobo away from Willy.  Snuggled in a big easy chair Willy is reading a dinosaur book to Bobo eager to reach the "survival of the fittest" section boys so love, only to discover it's not what he expected.  Not to worry, he and his stuffed monkey BFF, Bobo, are going to become authors.

Crayons and paper spread across the floor Willy begins their adventure drawing as he narrates to Bobo.  Beginning in a jungle, a big green jungle, with huge trees, a snake with a red tongue, poison mushrooms and wait...stop...Bobo and Willy in the story have a tent!  Two chairs and a sheet later the story continues wild animals everywhere, especially the tiger with huge teeth climbing toward Bobo as he explores among the trees. 

Unbeknownst to Willy, Earl has been climbing up the chair bringing the precarious tent crashing down.  Completely disgusted Willy stalks away, supplies and Bobo in hand, as an equally disgusted Earl watches.  Cozily perched on his knees Willy starts over at a table. 

This jungle is more dangerous than the preceding one, filled with vines and cat-eating snakes.  Poor Earl it would seem, has been consumed by a vicious jungle snake.  Pleased as he can be, Willy concludes his story.

But is it really the end?  It's surprising what a cat tail can feel like to a bare foot.  Who saves Bobo, indeed!

Eileen Rosenthal has a knack for striking the exact emotional tone of Willy's speech to Earl as well as in his storytelling skills as a young author.  Clever word choices place Willy in control of the day's adventures, in and out of his imagination, at least from his point of view.  Concise sentences provide  the perfect opportunity for Marc Rosenthal's complimentary artwork.

Creamy, rich, golden endpapers extend to supply the backdrop for the illustrations throughout the book.  In this tale Earl is prominently pictured in the lower right hand corner of the front endpapers patiently awaiting the page turn; this cat is the Prince of patience, of perseverance.  Warm brown pencil drawings are filled in digitally with basic colors, colors from Willy's box of crayons.

Visual thought bubbles appear above Willy depicting a more mature rendition of his childlike artwork; artwork doing more than telling a story.  With his usual attention to detail Rosenthal has Earl, back arched hair standing on end mouth in a scared yowl, gazing in horror at one of those snakes with long, red, forked tongues.  On the floor earnestly at work, Willy has his tongue out also. 

You have to love Bobo, inanimate dressed in his black and yellow sweater, the object that binds these two family members together in their tug-of-war for his attention.  Author Eileen Rosenthal and illustrator Marc Rosenthal bring their delicious blend of humor to I'll Save You Bobo! endearing more readers to these charming characters.  One-on-one or as a group read aloud these two titles are story time favorites.

For more about Marc Rosenthal here is a link to an interview he gave at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast on October 4, 2011.  To see other images in this newest title follow this link to the Simon & Schuster web page.

Sock Monkeys Forever and Always

I carried my sock monkey everywhere, we were inseparable.  (I still have him saved; loved to pieces nearly and after all this time, clearly fitting into the category of antique.)  I guess that's why it is so easy for me to identify with Willy in I Must Have Bobo!  Eileen Rosenthal, in this title, her debut as a picture book author, has penned a timeless story of that unique bond between a child and their stuffed

animal friend.

As soon as Willy hops out of bed in the morning, something is missing, Bobo.  Arms uplifted,  spread wide he loudly exclaims:

I NEED BOBO.

Bobo helps him figure out whether a bug is friendly or not.  Bobo is fearless on the playground and walking past the big dog behind the fence.  Willy can not function without Bobo.

But then, yes, there is a tail peeking out beneath the covers.  Lifting them, Willy discovers Bobo held in the arms of Earl, the family cat.  Carrying Bobo safely in his arms, Willy heads to breakfast unaware of the look of disgust on Earl's furry face.

As Earl calculatingly observes from the sidelines Willy relates to readers what Bobo does and does not like; in fact it is what he does and does not like.  Readers watch as that rascal Earl sneaks up grabbing Bobo by his tail pulling him away from Willy.  HEY EARL!  Fiddlesticks, caught again.

Waiting patiently as only a feline can, Earl seeks another opportunity to nab Bobo and does just that.  Willy seeks high and low for the pair.  What Willy eventually does discover is that, perhaps, he is not the only one in need of companion.  Who indeed will have the last laugh..er..hold on Bobo?

Drawn in pencil and digitally colored illustrations pop out in shades of primary colors on heavy creamy yellow pages.  Marc Rosenthal, Eileen's husband, has several children's books that he has both authored and illustrated to his credit as well as illustrating titles by other authors.  Here his art is distinctive, simple but descriptive.

In the beginning when Bobo is first missing three thought circles come from Willy's mind as he shouts out.  On the next three pages those thought circles are enlarged as canvases for the three pictures of why Willy needs Bobo.  Readers will note that the author and illustrator names on the cover appear as drag motion lines for the arms of Bobo. So too is the publication information across a double page spread as Bobo disappears off the right edge of the page.  Attention to detail is everything.

The thick sketchy brown lines not colored (only the characters have color) add to the nostalgic feel of the visuals complimenting the brown text; except when large black block letters are used to show anger in Willy and tiny black letters are used in a speech bubble for Earl.  Marc Rosenthal is accomplished at conveying so much with subtle shifts of his pencil.  Readers know exactly what Willy and Earl are thinking and Bobo has that same tolerant expression that sock monkeys wear so well.

The jacket flap states that this is the first collaborative project of Eileen and Marc Rosenthal but the polished, pleasing results are indicative of two minds that think as one.  I Must Have Bobo! is as comforting as your cherished stuffed friend and its effects will have you smiling long after the cover is closed.

I'll Save You Bobo! is set to appear in April of 2012.  Must we wait so long?