Schertle, Alice 1941-

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Schertle, Alice 1941-

Personal

Surname rhymes with "turtle"; born April 7, 1941, in Los Angeles, CA; daughter of Floyd C. (a real estate investor) and Marguerite (a teacher) Sanger; married Richard Schertle (a general contractor), December 21, 1963; children: Jennifer, Katherine, John. Education: University of Southern California, B.S. (cum laude), 1963.

Addresses

Home—Plainfield, MA.

Career

Highland School, Inglewood, CA, elementary school teacher, 1963-65; writer, 1965—.

Member

National Council of Teachers of English, Authors Guild, Authors League, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.

Awards, Honors

Parents' Choice Picture Book Award, 1989, and Christopher Award, 1990, both for William and Grandpa; Parents' Choice Picture Book Award, 1991, for Witch Hazel; Best Books citation, School Library Journal, 1995, for Advice for a Frog and Other Poems; National Parenting Publications Award, 1995, for How Now, Brown Cow?, and 1996, for Down the Road; Notable Children's Books citations, American Library Association, 1996, for both Advice for a Frog and Other Poems and Down the Road; Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award, for All You Need for a Snowman; Best Books of the Year citation, Nick Jr. magazine, 2003, for ¡Pío Peep!; Children's Books of the Year selection, Bank Street College Children's Book Committee, and Myers Outstanding Book Award honorable mention, Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights in North America, both for We.

Writings

FOR CHILDREN

The Gorilla in the Hall, illustrated by Paul Galdone, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1977.

The April Fool, illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1981.

Hob Goblin and the Skeleton, illustrated by Katherine Coville, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1982.

In My Treehouse, illustrated by Meredith Dunham, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1983.

Bim Dooley Makes His Move, illustrated by Victoria Chess, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1984.

Goodnight, Hattie, My Dearie, My Dove, illustrated by Linda Strauss, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1985, illustrated by Ted Rand, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2002.

My Two Feet, illustrated by Meredith Dunham, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1985.

That Olive!, illustrated by Cindy Wheeler, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1986.

Jeremy Bean's St. Patrick's Day, illustrated by Linda Shute, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1987.

Bill and the Google-eyed Goblins, illustrated by Patricia Coombs, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1987.

Gus Wanders Off, illustrated by Cheryl Harness, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1988.

William and Grandpa, illustrated by Lydia Dabcovich, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1989.

That's What I Thought, illustrated by John Wallner, Harper (New York, NY), 1990.

Witch Hazel, illustrated by Margot Tomes, Harper (New York, NY), 1991.

Little Frog's Song, illustrated by Leonard Everett Fisher, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 1992.

How Now, Brown Cow?, illustrated by Amanda Schaffer, Browndeer Press (San Diego, CA), 1994.

Down the Road, illustrated by Margot Tomes, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 1994, illustrated by E.B. Lewis, Browndeer Press (San Diego, CA), 1995.

Maisie, illustrated by Lydia Dabcovich, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1995.

Advice for a Frog and Other Poems, illustrated by Norman Green, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1995.

Keepers, illustrated by Ted Rand, Lothrop (New York, NY), 1996.

I Am the Cat, illustrated by Mark Buehner, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1999.

A Lucky Thing, illustrated Wendell Minor, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 1999.

All You Need for a Snowman, illustrated by Barbara Lavallee, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2002.

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, illustrated by Linda Hill Griffith, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2003.

When the Moon Is High, illustrated by Julia Noonan, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2003.

(Adapter into English) Alma Flor Ada and F. Isabel Campoy, ¡Pío Peep!: Traditional Spanish Nursery Rhymes, illustrated by Viví Escrivá, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2003.

The Skeleton in the Closet, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2003.

All You Need for a Beach, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2004.

A Very Hairy Bear, Harcourt (San Diego, CA), 2004.

One, Two, I Love You, illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully, Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA), 2004.

The Adventures of Old Bo Bear, illustrated by David Parkins, Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA), 2006.

Very Hairy Bear, illustrated by Matt Phelan, Harcourt (Orlando, FL), 2007.

We, illustrated by Kenneth Addison, Lee & Low Books (New York, NY), 2007.

Button Up!, illustrated by Petra Mathers, Harcourt (Orlando, FL), 2008.

Little Blue Truck, illustrated by Jill McElmurry, Harcourt (Orlando, FL), 2008.

Jeremy Bean, illustrated by David Slonim, Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA), 2008.

"CATHY AND COMPANY" SERIES

Cathy and Company and Mean Mr. Meeker, illustrated by Cathy Pavia, Children's Press (New York, NY), 1980.

Cathy and Company and Bumper the Bully, illustrated by Cathy Pavia, Children's Press (New York, NY), 1980.

Cathy and Company and the Green Ghost, illustrated by Cathy Pavia, Children's Press (New York, NY), 1980.

Cathy and Company and the Nosy Neighbor, illustrated by Cathy Pavia, Children's Press (New York, NY), 1980.

Cathy and Company and the Double Dare, illustrated by Cathy Pavia, Children's Press (New York, NY), 1980.

Cathy and Company and Hank the Horse, illustrated by Cathy Pavia, Children's Press (New York, NY), 1980.

Sidelights

Alice Schertle is the author of more than forty engaging titles for children, including William and Grandpa, Down the Road, and We. "I write children's books because I love them—always have," Schertle once stated. "The various seasons of my childhood are identified in my memory with the books that were important to me then. There was the year Mary Poppins floated into the lives of Jane and Michael Banks and me. And my sixth grade year I think I spent with the Black Stallion and King of the Wind." As an adult helping to provide such moments to new generations of children, Schertle takes her work seriously; as she once asserted, "We who write for young children share the considerable responsibility and the wonderful opportunity of showing them that words can paint pictures too."

Schertle was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. "As a child, I could usually be found folded into some unlikely position (as often as not I was in a tree) either reading a story or trying to write one," she once told SATA. "My writing was always very much influenced by the book I was reading at the moment. The Wizard of Oz and Mary Poppins inspired me to try my hand at fantasy. The Black Stallion led to a rash of horse stories. And after a summer of reading Nancy Drew books, I churned out mysteries peppered with words like ‘sleuth’ and ‘chum.’"

She continued: "My early stories did have one thing in common: each got off to a roaring good start and ended abruptly somewhere in the middle. Those beginnings

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were always fun to write, but when it came to developing the plot and bringing it along to a logical conclusion, the whole thing began to smack of work. It still does, sometimes, but I've found it to be a very satisfying kind of work when the tale is told."

After graduating from the University of Southern California in 1963, Schertle married and began teaching elementary school students in Inglewood, California. Following the birth of her first child two years later, she left her teaching job to devote herself full time to raising what would soon be three children. It was not until 1975, when her kids had grown old enough to allow her some free time, that she began writing again. Her first book for children, The Gorilla in the Hall, a story about a young boy's vivid imagination, was published in 1977.

Though her first read-aloud book received only mixed reviews from critics, Schertle's next book, The April Fool, was pronounced a winner by critics. An amusing story about a curmudgeonly king's search for a pair of shoes that will not hurt his feet, The April Fool was described by School Library Journal reviewer Patt Hays as "a satisfying story." For Schertle, the story "almost seem[ed] to write itself, from beginning to end…. I started with ‘Once there was a king whose feet hurt,’ and wrote through to ‘the end’ with scarcely a hitch along the way."

Schertle has often discovered ideas for stories in the activities of her three children. "In My Treehouse was inspired by my son's adventures in his own tree house," she once told SATA. "As a child, I spent a good deal of time in trees, so I took John up on his invitation to join him in his house in a big fruitless mulberry. In fact, I did a lot of writing up there, though I find they're not making tree houses as big as they used to." With In My Treehouse, Schertle translates the experience of being in her son's tree fort into a book about a young boy's love of being apart from the hustle and bustle of the world at large, and about gaining independence.

Living with cats as well as with children provided Schertle the inspiration for That Olive!, a picture book about a mischievous kitty that Lucy Young Clem described in School Library Journal as "a hall-of-fame cat story." Andy spends a lot of time looking for his cat, Olive, and Olive spends a lot of time playing hide-and-seek with Andy. Only the lure of tuna fish sandwiches brings the elusive Olive out into the open and into Andy's arms.

A book about making friends, Jeremy Bean's St. Patrick's Day features a first-grader whose excitement about his school's St. Patrick's Day party withers when he arrives at school and realizes that he has forgotten to put on the green sweater he so excitedly planned to wear the night before. The only one without green on, Jeremy is taunted by his classmates and finally hides in a closet until the school principal discovers him there and loans him the use of his green bow tie for the party. Describing the book's "clear prose and sympathetic observation of small children and their concerns," a Kirkus Reviews critic praised Jeremy Bean's St. Patrick's Day as a good book about making friends, even with school principals.

The award-winning William and Grandpa is another book about the relationship between children and adults, and the friendships that can develop. When Willie comes to stay with his lonely grandfather, the two share a host of simple activities—singing songs, catching shadows, making shaving cream moustaches, and telling old stories about Willie's father—that bond them into a close and loving relationship. "The continuity of generations and the warm relationship between children and the elderly are communicated equally through story and pictures," noted Carolyn Caywood in School Library Journal.

In Witch Hazel, which a Publishers Weekly writer called a "touching story of the triumph of imagination," Schertle tells the story of Johnny, a young boy who is raised by his two grown brothers, Bill and Bart, after the death of their parents. Bill and Bart are farmers who can do without the young boy's help as they work their small farm. When they give their young brother some pumpkin seed and a branch of witch hazel, Johnny plants the seeds and makes a scarecrow lady out of the tree branch, dressing "her" in one of his mother's old dresses. When Bill and Bart leave Johnny and take their crop to market after the fall harvest, Johnny dreams that the scarecrow, "Witch Hazel," has tossed his huge orange pumpkin up into the sky, where it has remained, transformed into a full, round harvest moon.

Little Frog's Song tells of the adventures and fears of a young frog who is washed from his lily pad during a fierce rain shower and must now find his way home. "The text … is a song, rich with images and the rhythm of repetition reminiscent of the writing of Margaret Wise Brown," commented Katie Cerra in Five Owls. Equally lyrical is Schertle's How Now, Brown Cow?, a collection of poetry. Everything from milking time to a cow's longing to jump the moon is covered in verses that a Publishers Weekly reviewer described as "by turns funny and tender, cheeky and thoughtful" and that Booklist critic Ilene Cooper dubbed "beauteously bovine." In Goodnight, Hattie, My Dearie, My Dove, Schertle deals with the familiar theme of the bedtime routine. First published in 1985 and reissued with new illustrations in 2002, this picture book describes how Hattie assembles a parade of stuffed animals to take to bed with her, creating a "reassuring and recognizable bedtime (and counting) story," as a Kirkus Reviews contributor noted.

A number of Schertle's prose titles deal with family situations, including Maisie, which gives an overview

of Grandmother Maisie's life, and Down the Road, which recounts young Hetty's first experience going to the store alone. When Hetty is asked to go and buy eggs for the family's breakfast, she takes the responsibility seriously. Everything goes fine until, homeward bound, she reaches for apples on an apple tree at the side of the road and accidentally dumps the eggs on the ground. Hetty, afraid to return home empty-handed, climbs the apple tree, where her worried parents eventually find and soothe her. As Martha V. Parravano commented in Horn Book, the tale unites the themes of temptation and redemption with "a modern lesson in supportive parenting techniques," thereby creating a "unique story." Down the Road is "a fine book that speaks straight to the heart," enthused Booklist reviewer Shelley Townsend-Hudson.

A poetry collection about memories and mementos, Keepers elicits a variety of memories in different moods, ranging from comical to pensive. In fact, Booklist critic Susan Dove Lempke found many of the poems to be "thought provoking" and suggested that they would be best understood by an audience more sophisticated than the intended one. On the other hand, I Am the Cat, a collection of narrative poems and haikus, takes a fresh look at a common subject, demonstrating in "this somewhat surprising book … that cats aren't always soft, cuddly felines," to quote Stephanie Zvirin in Booklist. A Publishers Weekly reviewer remarked that the collection "distills the essence of cat with humor and wry eloquence." A Horn Book reviewer cited as noteworthy the poems' "sinous" rhythms, "irony, surprise, and humor," concluding that I Am the Cat "holds its own in the cat-poetry category."

Looking at the world with a fresh perspective is often the role of poetry. In A Lucky Thing, written for somewhat older readers, Schertle creates a thematically unified and "thoughtful book of poems [that] celebrates the creative process," a Publishers Weekly reviewer noted. The work garnered favorable reviews. By reflecting the girl narrator's point of view of life on the farm, Schertle allows children to "see the ordinary with new eyes," commented Lempke, the critic adding that readers might be inspired to write verse of their own. Among the work's other enthusiasts numbered a Horn Book reviewer, who appreciated the "humor," "rhythmic assurance," and "robust language" of these fourteen lyric poems. Comparing the verses favorably to those of Nancy Larrick, Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books reviewer Deborah Stevenson praised Schertle's book for its "delicate and imaginative precision" and the "unmannered lyricism [that] brings a freshness to oft-elegized subjects." Stevenson even suggested that A Lucky Thing might transform some children into poetry lovers.

The companion titles All You Need for a Snowman and All You Need for a Beach are geared to the preschool crowd. With its "bouncy and light" text describing how to build a snowman, All You Need for a Snowman "rolls along like hand-packed snow," wrote Martha Topol in School Library Journal. Even with such rhythmic drive, Phelan aserted that the text goes on "without ever falling into lockstep predictability." The word "except" ends each page, encouraging readers and listeners to turn the pages of this "wintertime treat," as a Publishers Weekly reviewer dubbed the picture book. Joanna Rudge, in Horn Book, predicted that All You Need for a Snowman would make "a wonderfully childlike and ebullient addition to the winter repertoire," while a Kirkus Reviews contributor suggested that the work would be "read again and again."

In The Skeleton in the Closet a bony creature ransacks a little boy's room looking for something to cover his bare bones. A critic in Kirkus Reviews praised the "humorous upbeat rhyme," and Lempke pointed out in Horn Book that the text does not mention Halloween, making the book useful "to chill and thrill story-hour audiences year-round."

For ¡Pío Peep!: Traditional Spanish Nursery Rhymes, Schertle provides adaptations of the rhymes into English. It was a project she found absorbing and satisfying, saying, "Since these are not literal translations, but poetic recreations, my challenge was to work out English lines that would fall easily on the ear while retaining the humor and charm and delight of the originals." Ilene Cooper, in Booklist, wrote that both the Spanish and English versions "have a sweet, rhythmic simplicity," and Ann Welton called ¡Pío Peep! "a wonderful reassuring lap book" in her review for School Library Journal.

In One, Two, I Love You, Schertle's take on the popular "Buckle My Shoe" rhyme, a mother elephant and her young son spend an adventurous day riding a train, playing hide-and-seek, and catching stars. The author's "verse is lyrical and charming," noted School Library Journal contributor Jane Barrer, and Phelan wrote in Booklist that the work "offers a counting rhyme with an affectionate tone." The Adventures of Old Bo Bear centers on a little boy and his well-worn teddy bear. After Bo emerges from the washing machine missing an ear, his owner conjures a number of fanciful scenarios that contributed to his toy's condition, including a battle with pirates, a thrilling ride on a bucking bronco, and a showdown with some outlaws in the Old West. "The tale slyly segues between the real and imagined worlds," a Publishers Weekly critic observed.

The yearly cycle of a large brown bear is the focus of Very Hairy Bear, "a terrific way to introduce little ones to the seasons," according to Cooper. Schertle follows the creature as it fishes for salmon, forages for berries, and prepares for hibernation. The author's "patterned language sets up a playful cadence," wrote a Kirkus Reviews contributor. "Schertle makes frequent use of interior rhymes and alliteration to move the action along," Wendy Lukehart noted in a School Library Journal review. Little Blue Truck, a "pointed tribute to good hearts and amiable natures everywhere," according to Booklist reviewer John Peters, examines themes of kindness and courtesy. As it passes through the countryside each day, Little Blue, a pickup truck, cheerfully greets the rural residents, in stark contrast to rude, noisy, and obnoxious Dump Truck. One rainy day, Dump gets stuck in the mud, and its calls for help go unanswered until Little Blue comes to the rescue. "This old-fashioned picture book has a timeless, if well-trod, message," remarked Kitty Flynn in Horn Book. A contributor in Publishers Weekly remarked that Schertle's "rhyming stanzas are succinct," and a Kirkus Reviews critic noted that the author's "rhythmic text … fairly chants itself."

In the award-winning title We, Schertle offers a "panoramic, free-verse view of the human story," remarked a contributor in Kirkus Reviews. The author traces human evolution from its origins in Africa to the contemporary, and her spare text explores humankind's many achievements in the arts and sciences. According to Booklist critic Rochman, Schertle's tale "is about the diffusion of cultures and the rich connections." Writing in Publishers Weekly, a critic described We as "a compelling work that celebrates humankind's shared beginnings as much as its diversity and achievements."

"When I talk to classes of children and tell them about the unfinished stories I used to write, they usually laugh and say they do the same thing," Schertle once explained to SATA. "Sometimes I suggest they try writing the last half of a story first, and then go back and write the beginning. That's something I occasionally do now with my books. Sometimes a funny, or exciting, or ridiculous situation will pop into my head, an idea that would make a good middle of a story. So I'll sit down and write about some characters who find themselves in that situation, though I haven't yet any idea how they got there or what will finally happen to them. Then comes the hard part—writing the beginning and the ending, and making the parts fit together smoothly and logically.

"One of the nicest things about being an author is that it gives me the opportunity to talk to classes of children about books and writing. I always tell them that the best way to learn to write is to read and read and read. It's advice I take myself. There's a tall stack of books precariously balanced on my bedside table, and a good many of them are children's books. One lifetime will never be long enough for me to read all the books I want to read, but it'll be fun to try."

Biographical and Critical Sources

PERIODICALS

Booklist, September 15, 1994, Ilene Cooper, review of How Now, Brown Cow?, p. 133; April 15, 1995, Stephanie Zvirin, review of Maisie, p. 1508; Septem- ber 15, 1995, Shelley Townsend-Hudson, review of Down the Road, p. 161; October 15, 1996, Susan Dove Lempke, review of Keepers, p. 428; March 15, 1999, Susan Dove Lempke, review of A Lucky Thing, p. 1340; April 1, 1999, Stephanie Zvirin, review of I Am the Cat, p. 1417; April 1, 2002, Shelley Townsend-Hudson, review of Good Night, Hattie, My Dearie, My Dove, p. 1335; November 15, 2002, Carolyn Phelan, review of All You Need for a Snowman, p. 612; October 1, 2004, Carolyn Phelan, review of One, Two, I Love You, p. 338; February 1, 2006, Julie Cummins, review of The Adventures of Old Bo Bear, p. 57; May 1, 2007, Hazel Rochman, review of We, p. 94; October 1, 2007, Ilene Cooper, review of Very Hairy Bear, p. 67; April 1, 2008, John Peters, review of Little Blue Truck, p. 55.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, June, 1999, Deborah Stevenson, review of A Lucky Thing, pp. 364-365.

Five Owls, April, 1992, Katie Cerra, review of Little Frog's Song, pp. 76-77.

Horn Book, September-October, 1991, Ann A. Flowers, review of Witch Hazel, p. 589; March-April, 1996, Martha V. Parravano, review of Down the Road, pp. 191-192; May, 1999, review of A Lucky Thing, p. 347; September, 1999, review of I Am the Cat, p. 621; November-December, 2002, Joanna Rudge, review of All You Need for a Snowman, p. 739; May-June, 2008, Kitty Flynn, review of Little Blue Truck, p. 299.

Kirkus Reviews, January 15, 1987, review of Jeremy Bean's St. Patrick's Day, p. 132; March 1, 1999, review of I Am the Cat, pp. 381-382; March 1, 2002, review of Good Night, Hattie, My Dearie, My Dove, p. 345; September 15, 2002, review of All You Need for a Snowman, pp. 1399-1400; March 1, 2003, review of When the Moon Is High, p. 397; April 1, 2003, review of Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, p. 539; April 15, 2003, review of ¡Pío Peep!: Traditional Spanish Nursery Rhymes, p. 603; July 15, 2003, review of The Skeleton in the Closet, p. 968; January 15, 2006, review of The Adventures of Old Bo Bear, p. 89; April 15, 2007, review of We; October 1, 2007, review of Very Hairy Bear; April 1, 2008, review of Little Blue Truck.

New York Times Book Review, February 2, 1997, review of Keepers, p. 18.

Publishers Weekly, January 16, 1981, review of The April Fool, p. 80; June 27, 1986, review of That Olive!, p. 85; January 16, 1987, review of Jeremy Bean's St. Patrick's Day, p. 73; July 10, 1987, review of Bill and the Google-eyed Goblins, p. 68; May 19, 1989, review of William and Grandpa, p. 82; June 28, 1991, review of Witch Hazel, p. 101; September 5, 1994, review of How Now, Brown Cow?, pp. 110-111; March 15, 1999, review of I Am the Cat, p. 59; May 10, 1999, review of A Lucky Thing, p. 68; September 18, 2000, review of Down the Road, p. 113; October 21, 2002, review of All You Need for a Snowman, p. 73; April 21, 2003, "Pass the Poetry," review of Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, pp. 64-65; August 4, 2003, review of The Skeleton in the Closet, p. 80; October 4, 2004, review of One, Two, I Love You, p. 86; February 27, 2006, review of The Adventures of Old Bo Bear, p. 60; April 30, 2007, review of We, p. 160; September 17, 2007, review of A Very Hairy Bear, p. 52; April 28, 2008, review of Little Blue Truck, p. 137.

Reading Teacher, December, 1997, "Memories," review of Keepers, p. 330.

School Library Journal, August, 1980, Diane Meyer, review of Cathy and Company and the Nosy Neighbor, p. 70; October, 1981, Patt Hays, review of The April Fool, p. 135; October, 1982, review of Hob Goblin and the Skeleton, p. 145; May, 1983, review of In My Treehouse, p. 66; May, 1984, Diane S. Rogoff, review of Bim Dooley Makes His Move, pp. 71-72; October, 1985, Ginny Caine Cooper, review of Goodnight, Hattie, My Dearie, My Dove, p. 162; November, 1985, Joan McGrath, review of My Two Feet, p. 77; August, 1986, Lucy Young Clem, review of That Olive!, p. 87; October, 1987, David Gale, review of Jeremy Bean's St. Patrick's Day, p. 118; January, 1988, Pamela Miller Ness, review of Bill and the Google-eyed Goblins, p. 70; March, 1989, Sally R. Dow, review of Gus Wanders Off, p. 170; August, 1989, Carolyn Caywood, review of William and Grandpa, p. 132; January, 1991, Carolyn Vang Schuler, review of That's What I Thought, p. 80; September, 1991, Ruth K. MacDonald, review of Witch Hazel, p. 240; July, 1992, Joy Fleishhacker, review of Little Frog's Song, p. 64; April, 1995, Jane Gardner Connor, review of Maisie, p. 116, and Sue Norris, review of How Now, Brown Cow?, p. 129; September, 1995, Ellen Donohue Warwick, review of Advice for a Frog, p. 197; April, 1996, Vanessa Elder, review of Down the Road, pp. 117-118; December, 1996, Kathleen Whalin, review of Keepers, p. 117; June, 1999, Joan Zaleski, review of A Lucky Thing, p. 120, and Margaret Bush, review of I Am the Cat, p. 120; June, 2002, Heather E. Miller, review of Goodnight, Hattie, My Dearie, My Dove, p. 110; December, 2002, Martha Topol, review of All You Need for a Snowman, p. 108; July, 2003, Maryann H. Owen, review of When the Moon Is High, p. 106, Ann Welton, review of ¡Pío Peep!, p. 121, and Lee Bock, review of Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, p. 19; September, 2003, Gay Lynn Van Vleck, review of The Skeleton in the Closet, p. 190; January, 2005, Jane Barrer, review of One, Two, I Love You, p. 97; February, 2006, Marge Loch-Wouters, review of The Adventures of Old Bo Bear, p. 109; May, 2007, Marianne Saccardi, review of We, p. 124; December, 2007, Wendy Lukehart, review of Very Hairy Bear, p. 99; July, 2008, Rachael Vilmar, review of Little Blue Truck, p. 81.