Mired in the winter doldrums, potato farmer and fix-it man extraordinaire J. Jupiter Jackson is convinced by a smooth-talking puzzle peddler to parlay his lightning-quick jigsaw-solving skill into fame and fortune. The two hit the road, dazzling crowds as varied as fans at a Wild West show to the United States Congress, but despite the peddler's assertion that "You're big potatoes now," Jackson grows homesick for his animal friends and eventually realizes that life on his farm was more fulfilling. This rattling fine yarn has elements of a tall tale (in one memorable scene, Jackson puts the jigsawed ice on Central Park pond back together), and Birchman (The Raggly-Scraggly No-Soap No-Scrub Girl) relates the story with gusto, its gleeful excesses mirrored in San Souci's merry watercolors. The artist zeroes right in on the heart of the tale with his character portraits, from the feckless Jackson (whose goofy charm recalls a young Dick Van Dyke), hands a-blur as he displays his talent, to the unctuous peddler and the lively potato farm menagerie. It's a romp if ever there was one. Ages 4-up.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From School Library Journal
Grade 2-5?Young potato farmer J.J. Jackson whiles away long, boring winters playing checkers with his plow horse, reading stories to the chickens, listening to opera records with his mynah bird, and fixing all sorts of broken things for his neighbors. Enter Sean McShaker, world's greatest jigsaw-puzzle maker, who discovers that J.J. is a whiz at putting things back together, and insists that they go on the road. "Jigsaw" Jackson reluctantly bids his animals farewell, and heads off with McShaker to awe the country with his skills. After great fame and continued success (and continued pleading telegraphs, letters, and phone calls from his animals to come home), Jigsaw Jackson is invited to Congress to display his puzzle-joining prowess. Alas, a mysteriously missing last piece is the performer's cue that it's time to head back to the farm, where he finds a more satisfying cure to winter boredom-he marries a widow with nine children. Birchman is a super storyteller, and this tall tale is packed with hilarious scenarios that will have children enthralled and adults chuckling. San Souci's watercolor illustrations are no less amusing: there's just enough fantasy blended with realism to create some pretty hysterical pictures. The cover illustration, featuring Wild West circus star "Bison Bob" plowing through the center of a gigantic jigsaw puzzle while standing atop two galloping bison, is enough to show readers that they are in for one fun ride.?Christina Linz, Alachua County Library District, Gainesville, FL
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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