Catch That Cookie!

May 26, 2014
Marshall, the skeptic of his elementary school classroom, isn’t buying any malarkey about gingerbread men. “They can’t run for real,” he announces. “No way.” But when his teacher, Mrs. Gray, goes to retrieve the cookies the class has made, the oven is empty. The gingerbread people have escaped, apparently, and they’ve left clues in verse: “We ran from the oven, we were bored and hot,/ Now we’re hiding in a big, black ___.” The class quickly enters the spirit of the hunt, but it’s Marshall the doubter whose detective work leads the class to the “G-men.” Durand (Mitchell Goes Bowling), a pseudonym for agent
Holly McGhee, understands elementary-school culture and cuisine: “Marshall put some good stuff on his gingerbread man—a silver-ball belt and six eyes (he really liked raisins.)” With characteristic energy, Small (One Cool Friend) uses bold lines,
liberal swaths of wash, and wry humor to draw Marshall’s school and his stylish teacher: “Kudos, Marsh,” she says, after Marshall struggles with the big bowl and spoon. “You rocked that dough.” Ages 3–5. Agent: Elena Giovinazzo, Pippin Properties.

July 15, 2014
Some peripatetic gingerbread men make a believer of a skeptical grade schooler.Mrs. Gray's class has been listening to variations on "The Gingerbread Man" all week in preparation for a cooking activity. Marshall knows it's all hooey-cookies can't run. The kids mix, cut and decorate before Mrs. Gray "locks" the gingerbread men in the oven...but when the oven is opened, the cookies have vanished. A series of rhymed clues takes the kids around the school in pursuit. Though initially Marshall suspects that Mrs. Gray has cooked up a literacy exercise to get between the kids and their cookies, a stray raisin makes him wonder-and then he notices hundreds of gingerbread footprints on the floor of the gym. Those "G-men" must be napping in the doll corner after all that running! Durand has created an attractive protagonist in Marshall; his skepticism is exactly age-appropriate, as is his pride in the way he "rocks" the dough. Small's loose, line-and-watercolor cartoons feature a freckled, redheaded Caucasian boy with expressive eyebrows. (Mrs. Gray is also white, but her classroom is multiethnic.) There's something a little half-baked about the story, though; although the buildup to the discovery of the cookies is effective, the denouement sags: Just what is going to happen to all these apparently sentient cookies? A closing vignette showing Marshall about to bite his cookie's head off is downright disquieting.Cute concept; uneven execution. (Picture book. 5-8)

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August 1, 2014

K-Gr 2-Children in day care and elementary classes will see themselves in Small's sensitive and hilarious watercolor, ink, and colored-pencil renderings of Durand's December drama. Following a weeklong spate of gingerbread stories, Marshall, a "ginger" himself, is skeptical: "'They can't run for real, ' he told everybody." Neither affirming nor contradicting him, the teacher simply shepherds her flock to the kitchen, where they can draw their own conclusions. Despite a few colloquialisms that may sound less hip in years to come ("You rocked that dough"), the upbeat narrative moves quickly and offers audience participation. When the dumbfounded teacher unlocks the oven, the only hint of baking is a nearby note displaying the first of four rhymed verses that present clues for children to complete before searching for the next hint. Marshall is loaded with freckles and personality. His face undergoes myriad transformations as he studies the mounting evidence: the fallen raisin, the bad handwriting on the notes, the hundreds of tiny, brown footprints in the gym. When he solves the puzzle and recovers his cookie, his expression of wonderment is priceless. Small employs muted, monochromatic backgrounds to spotlight the jaunty patterns and colors worn by the main characters and multicultural cast. He interprets this race to outsmart a sly opponent with lively lines, flexible figures, humor, and deep respect for his protagonist. Add this to your small shelf of truly special seasonal explorations of belief, but don't wait for a holiday to share it!-Wendy Lukehart, District of Columbia Public Library

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from October 1, 2014
Preschool-G *Starred Review* Young Marshall's class has been hearing about runaway gingerbread men for a solid week, but the skeptical tousle-head doesn't believe a word of it! They can't run for real, he declares to his classmates. No way. He gets a chance to test his theory when his class makes a batch of gingerbread men. When the baking timer goes off, Marshall leads a parade of his classmates into the kitchen, opens the oven door, and discovers, to his shock and amazement, that the gingerbread men are all gone. Horrors! Is it possible that they could have run away? Marshall doesn't buy it, but then a clue to their possible whereabouts is discovered, and that leads to another clue and another, until Marshall announces that he knows where the fugitive cookies are. But does he? Durand has written a delightfully ingenious story with an altogether appealing protagonist in Marshall. The icing on the cakeer, gingerbreadis Small's wonderful pictures, created in pen-and-ink and watercolor, which fill single- and double-page spreads. A wonderful draftsman, Small uses a fluid line that adds energy to an already lively story and further invests it with wit and whimsy. All of these ingredients combine to make a truly tasty tale.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)