Templeton Gets His Wish

March 2, 2015
Pizzoli (Number One Sam) juices up the be-careful-what-you-wish-for theme with sly humor and a midcentury aesthetic that expresses itself in a vibrant palette of 1950s kitchen-appliance colors and bold, graphic forms. A tangerine-colored cat named Templeton is plagued by parents who order him to bathe and clean up, and brothers who steal his toys. But when he wishes them all away (thanks to a “magic diamond” he orders in the mail, funded by raiding his brother’s piggy bank), he soon discovers that the house is pretty lonely. “There was no one to play with. And he was starting to think he might need a bath after all,” writes Pizzoli as a bird nests on Templeton’s head and flies buzz around him. “Templeton was alone,” reads a spread dulled by the dismal gray of night, delivering a one-two punch as Templeton stares out glumly from his house’s single lighted window. Luckily, the magic diamond lets him wish his family back. Cheerful entertainment, with just a touch of snark. Ages 3–5. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House.

March 15, 2015
Pizzoli's young cat, Templeton, gets what he wishes for, with predictable results. Templeton is the eldest kitten in the house, so he is the beneficiary of all the usual stuff: demanding parents-"Scrub harder, Templeton!" "Clean up this mess!"-and a trio of brothers who take his favorite toys. He comes across an advertisement in a comic book for a magic diamond that grants wishes. "So he did something bad"-robbing a brother's piggy bank-"and got something good in return." That's some rough philosophical ground, though it is also the most original-if disturbing-turf turned in this otherwise foreseeable tale. Templeton wishes his family gone; they disappear; he revels: playing, singing, lounging, making a mess of the house and himself. No more demands, no more sharing. Then things get boring, scary at night, stinky, and lonely. He wishes his family back, and back they come, same as they ever were, which is fine with Templeton: same demands, same sharing. Pizzoli brings extremely simple language to the task, and so too for the artwork, though here the complementary colors set eyeballs vibrating, and Templeton radiates a hepcat appeal. But the piggy-bank heist never gets revisited, ill wishes don't get explored, and no twist gives the old story some fresh air. Moderately inspired but tired all the same. (Picture book. 3-5)

May 1, 2015

PreS-Gr 2-In this riff on the "Be careful what you wish for" adage, Templeton, a neon orange kitten, is fed up with his parents for constantly telling him to clean up and wash up and annoyed by his little brothers, who always take his toys. When he sees an ad for a magic wish-granting diamond, he robs his brother's piggy bank to fund his purchase. Once on his own, Templeton, like any other youngster, goes wild. He promptly draws all over the walls and stops bathing. His enjoyment of this new freedom is short-lived, however, as being by himself makes him lonely and quite dirty. He wishes that his family were back, and he no longer resents their demands and impositions upon their return. The retro-style cartoonish illustrations are reminiscent of Ed Emberley's work, with their bold greens, oranges, and teals, and their tongue-in-cheek humor complements Pizzoli's spare prose. VERDICT A fun and relatable story that teaches kids an important lesson without being overtly moralizing, this book will find a place in most collections.-Yelena Alekseyeva-Popova, formerly at Chappaqua Library, NY

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2015
Preschool-K Templeton just wants his family to leave him alone. They are always on his case to take a bath, clean up his mess, and share his toys with his little brothers. So Templeton orders a magic diamond that grants wishes, and he requests that his family disappear. Free to go unwashed, eat Sugar Snax on the couch, write on the walls, and have his toys all to himself, he is ecstatic until bedtime. The increasingly smelly and forlorn youngster becomes so lonesome that he wishes things back to the way they were before. A grouchy Mom says, You need a bath! while a cranky Dad whispers, Clean up this mess! and his brothers take all his favorite toys. A happy Templeton snuggles in bed, comforted by the return to normalcy. Pizzoli's wide-eyed and appealing orange cats are an expressive bunch. Templeton himself conveys intense emotion with a few simple lines and very bright colors, as his tale reflects the endearing aspects of a small child's struggles to behave.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)