Max the Brave

September 2, 1996
Depression, the ancients used to say, was about dropping into the underworld, making contact with the dead, and it was one of the essential steps in the development of wisdom. Today, the American Medical Association calls depression a disease and often prescribes drugs and hospitalization to treat it. It is refreshing, then, to discover that Benson was provoked by his own clinical depression into a spiritual journey. Benson's small bundles of wisdom comprise this charming and elegantly written little book, and readers will be so impressed by the ease with which the author writes through his depression that they may well wish to imitate his craft in exorcizing their own demons of depression. Benson has given us that rare gift, a thought-provoking record of his own spiritual quest for God through the dark night of depression. Indeed, Willa Cather's phrase, "Thy will be done in art as it is in heaven," which Benson quotes, could serve as an epigraph to this fine work.

June 22, 2015
Vere (Bedtime for Monsters) introduces a small but brave black kitten who is ready to chase some mice. The problem? “Max the Brave just needs to find out what a mouse looks like.” So begins a long chain of interactions with a fly, fish, flock of birds, and other animals, all of whom explain that they are not the mouse Max is looking for and send him on his way. When Max does meet a mouse, the rodent proves to be a quick thinker: “Who me?” he says. “I’m Monster!... But I did just see Mouse asleep over there.” After an unpleasant run-in with a giant green creature that resembles a mutant pickle, Max decides that chasing monsters may be preferable to chasing mice. Vere sets the action against empty, construction-paper-colored backdrops that keep a tight focus on Max and the animals he meets. Both the punchy text and illustrations command attention, and plenty of readers will get a kick out of feeling superior to Max, whose bravery is surpassed only by his gullibility and naiveté. Ages 3–6.

June 15, 2015
The time-worn scenario in which mouse outwits cat gets a fresh new spin. Max, a brave, fearless kitten who prefers a superhero cape to cutesy bows, chases mice. There's just one little problem: he doesn't know what a mouse looks like. Going in search of one, Max encounters various unfamiliar creatures and asks who they are; each identifies itself in turn and reports on the real mouse's whereabouts close at hand. When Max eventually meets up with Mouse, he naturally doesn't recognize it, making it easy for the tiny would-be prey to flummox his nemesis completely by claiming to be Monster-and pointing the way to a sleeping "mouse" nearby who-surprise!-turns out to be the real monster. The narrator's voice, expertly pulled off with dry British wit, and the childlike, quirky illustrations are the real humorous draws here. Kids will chuckle at Max's bravado, the mouse's blithe deception, and the intrepid hero's antics battling the laughable monster. The short sentences move the pace along at a steady clip; the artwork, rendered mostly in black but with some splashes of bold color, is set against bright pastel-hued pages with sparse background details, keeping readers tightly focused on the action and growing tension. Both the ending and Max's realization that bravery is only occasionally necessary are comically satisfying. A cat-and-mouse game to be laughed at and reread. (Picture book. 3-5)

COPYRIGHT(2015) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 1, 2015

PreS-Gr 2-Max is cute and sweet-looking. So cute and sweet, as a matter of fact, that people sometimes dress him up with pink bows. But Max does not like pink bows. He is a fearless, black kitten. A very brave black kitten, and one who chases mice, he'll have you know. He just needs to find out what a mouse actually looks like. So, Max is on the hunt. Is there a mouse in that can? No, but a fly is. Fly says he saw Mouse scurry by just moments ago. Next Max tries the fish bowl. "Excuse me, are you Mouse?" asks Max. No, says Fish, but he just saw Mouse dash outside. Max checks with the birds in the trees, the neighborhood pink elephant, and Rabbit. They all insist that Mouse just went that-a-way. Max finally does find a creature who looks suspiciously like a mouse, but he claims to be a MONSTER and points him in the direction of said mouse, who is sleeping nearby. Of course, the big, green, homely thing IS a monster and is much bigger than Max. One gulp is all it takes, and Max is in the dark pit of Monster's stomach. Fortunately, the monster sneezes and Max flies out. Maybe "chasing mice is not all it's cracked up to be," he says. He doesn't have to be Max the Brave all the time, except when chasing small monsters with big ears and long tails that just happen to look suspiciously like mice. Full of playful humor, this book's cartoonlike illustrations are created digitally with some crayon. The individual pages are bright yellow, orange, green, and salmon. A nice layout, enhanced by the humorous text, character expressions, and a not-scary monster to boot. VERDICT Highly recommended.-Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.