Customer Reviews

Boolar's Big Day Out: Tales from the Box, Book 2

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"Boolar's Big Day Out" (Tales from the Box, v.2)
Written & Illustrated by Sally Gardner
(Bloomsbury Books, 2003)
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The first volume in a charming but short-lived series (which so far has only gone into two books, total, including the first volume, "The Countess's Calamity") The story has many familiar elements, notably genteel, hobbitlike mice and a bunch of talking dolls, whom the mice take in and shelter, ala "A Cricket In Times Square." Although these are familiar ideas, they are handled well, and the story has a nice, solid feel. Best of all are the cast of characters who, although not tremendously well-developed, are enjoyable, particularly for families that like to read out loud and make up lots of voices... In this volume, the stolid, heroic doll Boolar has his head turned by a little bit of theater work, and forgets about his friends as they prepare themselves for a long winter in the wild. Of course he realizes what a cad he's been, and comes back to earth, but it takes him a while to get the stars out of his eyes. As in the first book, the artwork includes faded gray photos of an actual mouse/dollhouse made by the author, used as the background for the cartoon scenes... which is kind of cool. Both volumes are fun, and worth giving a spin - this one in particular places strong emphasis on social cooperation and personal growth. (Joe Sixpack, ReadThatAgain children's book reviews)