Review - Mama Lion Wins the Race

Mama Lion Wins the Race
by Jon J. Muth
Date: 2017
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 56
Format: e-book
Source: library

Start your engines: the race is on! And Mama Lion and Tigey are off -- with their cool goggles and snazzy sports car!

Racing teams gather from far and wide for this madcap race. But who will win the trophy cup? Will it be the playful Flying Pandinis? The mischievous Knitted Monkey Crew? Or will Mama Lion and Tigey speed past the finish line in first place?

As Tigey says, "winning is winning," but sometimes the journey itself -- filled with ineffable moments of mystery, beauty, and joy -- is even more fun than getting the prize.

With cars inspired by the early days of Italian motor-racing and characters based on his children's beloved toy animals, Jon J Muth has created a uniquely spellbinding book young readers will return to again and again.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

I enjoyed this one more than I thought I would. Although it is longer than the average picture book, it didn't really seem that long because of the nice story and beautiful illustrations.

Mama Lion and Tigey, a couple of toys, enter a road race against a number of others, including some sock monkeys and a stuffed bunny on a motorbike. They race through a landscape that looks decidedly Italian (those particular pictures are very pretty), while dealing with car trouble and sabotage from some of the other competitors.

You know those feel-good stories where a competitor in a running race stop to help another, giving up their lead in the process? That's exactly what happens here, and the favour is eventually returned. The title of the book takes on a new meaning that isn't quite as obvious at first glance. Competition and winning turns out to be not as important as friendship and doing the right thing. (And I like the little character quirk of Bun Bun and how it brings the end of the book to a sweet close.)

I haven't read much by Muth, other than Zen Ghosts, which I found to be a little bit creepy with the children being lured to an out-of-the-way house on Halloween. But the illustrations were lovely there, and they're just as strong here. I would check out more of the author's books just for the pictures alone.

Overall, this is a sweet story about friendship, cooperation, and how you really "win" a race.

Quotable moment:

 
Premise: 4/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 4/5
Illustrations: 4/5
Originality: 4/5

Enjoyment: 4/5

Overall: 4 out of 5

Review - Zen Ghosts

Zen Ghosts
by Jon J. Muth
Date: 2010
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 40
Format: e-book
Source: library

It's Halloween.

The trees are ablaze in fiery reds. Excited children don colorful costumes. And there's mystery and fun around every corner! When Addy, Michael, and Karl finish trick-or-treating, their bags are brimming with treats. But the fun isn't over yet. Their good friend Stillwater the panda has one more special surprise in store for them. A mysterious visitor is about to tell them a spine-tingling story -- one that will fill each and every reader with wonder.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

It's October, so I thought I should probably read at least one Halloween story. I happened to see this e-book in the library system, so I thought I'd give it a try.

This is the second picture book I've read that tries to teach elements of Zen to young children (the first one being Sanjay Nambiar's Maybe: A Little Zen for Little Ones, which I thought was pretty awful). I'm not sure it's something that the age group is really ready for. I understand why the author thinks the topic is appropriate for children, and I agree to a certain extent. But many children today are very literal thinkers, and puzzling over a koan probably isn't going to be a very useful experience.

The pictures are lovely, and I wouldn't mind checking out more books illustrated by this author/artist. However, I did find some of the plot points a bit unnerving. Three little kids go trick-or-treating alone, and then they're told by a giant talking panda to meet him somewhere so he can take them off to his house to tell them a ghost story. Does that not sound like child luring to you? The added element of candy just makes it all the more uncomfortable. (I realize these kids have some sort of past with Stillwater the panda, but I still didn't like the way they just went off with him without parental consent. Adult family friends can and do take advantage of children, and I don't know if this message of explicit trust is the best one to be sending.)

So... "yes" to the pictures, "maybe" to the koan, "no" to the rest of the story. I hoped to like this one more than I did, but I just can't get past the slightly creepy panda taking three unsupervised children to his house. Maybe I'm just too paranoid/cynical for books like this.

Premise: 2/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 4/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 2/5

Overall: 2.67 out of 5