From Publishers Weekly
"Saturday morning, I sure am in luck!/ A raise in allowance--I get a buck!" Yes, one dollar is the buck featured in this feeble tale. When her father drops her at a store offering wares ranging from stuffed animals to beef jerky, the young narrator explores her purchasing options, with the aid of clerks whose last names (Cash, Silver, Buck, Penny) are as trite as the book's rhyming verses. Lin's (The Ugly Vegetables) artwork often further complicates some already elaborate scenarios: even though the text, "Four quarters times three equals/ twelve gummy bear treats,/ a much better deal/ than ten at ten cents each," makes no mention of other candies, the illustration introduces candy sticks and gumballs into the mix. All the options throw the would-be consumer into such a tizzy that she, predictably, decides to bank her buck. Without a clear depiction of the addition at work here (and some unrealistic prices to boot) and featuring photos of a dollar bill and coins superimposed on bland, stylized pictures, this thin story offers little adventure. Ages 5-9.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 2-A little girl gets a dollar allowance, goes to a store, and examines several options of what she can buy with it. Colorful, lively gouache paintings show a riot of goods available, all marked with price tags. The cutout color photos of actual currency make it easy for children to identify it. The text, however, is lackluster and the rhymes seem forced ("Four quarters times three equals/twelve gummy bear treats,/a much better deal/than ten at ten cents each"), sometimes making the word problems confusing. The math gets needlessly complicated, especially when readers are expected to make comparisons between products on different pages. The premise of "What can I buy for a dollar?" is a good one; however, the merchandise may be difficult for children to find in a neighborhood store. Most places no longer carry penny candy and may never have stocked pet fleas or pet flies, three for a penny. Jon Scieszka's Math Curse (Viking, 1995) and Rosemary Wells's hilarious Bunny Money (Dial, 1997) are better math stories in picture-book format.
Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
