The Jungle Grapevine

September 14, 2009
Birds, snakes, gazelles and other African animals, rendered in stylized pen, ink and watercolor art, inadvertently pass along misinformation in this clever take on the familiar game of telephone. The ruckus begins when a geometrically patterned turtle comments, “The Watering Hole is always good for a laugh.... But lately the humor has been drying up.” Bird then tells Elephant that the Watering Hole is drying up, prompting a rumor of drought that gets twisted into fears of flood and news of mass migration. Debut author Beard's illustrations, which reveal characters in constant motion, bypass mere naturalism to evoke the creatures' emotional states and personalities (the bodies of a startled flock of flamingoes are defined by bold spirals that resemble treble clefs; music notes blast from an elephant's trunk while animals in the borders play trumpets and horns). A substantial black border focuses the action like a camera lens, as additional creatures and flora spill out into the edges. Beard neatly brings the story full circle, but paves the way for a new round of misunderstandings. Dryly witty and visually compelling. Ages 4–8.

September 1, 2009
K-Gr 3 -"Grapevine" immediately announces itself as playfully idiomatic. When Bird isn't certain of what Turtle's told him (the watering hole's humor is "drying up"), he sparks a series of misunderstandings. He tells Elephant that the watering hole itself is drying up. As word spreads from Elephant to Snake to Crocodile, and so on, the confusion builds as the animals are caught in an unintended game of telephone. The simple pen-and-ink and watercolor spreads are imaginative and employ a picture frame that the unruly animals often break through. Beard uses a subtle palette as well as brightly colored pages with plenty of white space. Budding artists will appreciate the humor of the elegantly stylized illustrations. This offering is ripe for lessons on idiomatic expressions, rumors, gossip, the age-old game of telephone, and life at an African watering hole."Teresa Pfeifer, Alfred Zanetti Montessori Magnet School, Springfield, MA"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2009
Grades K-2 Beard, a celebrated artist, tries his hand at picture books by depicting a game of telephone in Africa. Turtle and Bird are out strolling when the former casually remarks that while good times have been had at the Watering Hole, lately the humor has been drying up. Bird, just as perplexed as kids will be by that line, flies off and tells Elephant that The Watering Hole is drying up, and on it goes via Snake, Gazelle, Hippo, and Croc, until word makes it back to Bird that theres a fire. The story stops at this incendiary-sounding point, and while the concept is familiar, the missed connections and miscommunications are forced and nebulous. The stylized pen, ink, and watercolor art has kid appeal, however, and often bleeds past the frames of each scene to continue the action in the borders. While serviceable for read-alouds and animal lovers, the setting is better depicted in Manya Stojics Rain (2000) and the idea better executed in Laura Ljungkvists Tonis Topsy-Turvy Telephone Day (2001).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)