________________ CM . . . . Volume XX Number 39. . . .June 6, 2014

cover

Ben & Zip: Two Short Friends.

Joanne Linden. Illustrated by Tom Goldsmith.
Brooklyn, NY: Flashlight Press, 2014.
32 pp., hardcover, $16.95.
ISBN 978-1-9362612-8-4.

Preschool-kindergarten / Ages 3-5.

Review by Kaitlyn Vardy.

*** /4

   

excerpt:

Ben was short. Zip was shorter. They skipped along the boardwalk toward their favorite spot, Wally’s Popcorn Wagon.

 

Ben & Zip Two Short Friends is told in the point of view of Ben, a young boy whose bestinternal art friend is his dog, Zip. Together, they are two short friends. Skipping along the boardwalk heading towards Wally’s Popcorn Wagon, their favourite popcorn shop, Ben and Zip were enjoying the sandy beach and the beautiful weather. Unexpectedly during their adventure, thunder started to rumble, the sky turned gray, and, amongst the panicked crowd, the two short friends were separated. In a panic, the race was on for Ben to find his best friend Zip. While searching for Zip in the crowd, “All he saw was: Right knees, left knees, knees with sandy patches. Fat knees, bony knees, knees with bumps and scratches. Too many knees!...Black hair, brown hair, hair short and curly. Red hair, yellow hair, hair long and swirly. Too much hair!” Continuing to search high and low, Ben climbs up the lifeguard stand hoping to spot his friend. Recognizing Wally’s Popcorn Wagon, Ben zipped down the boardwalk at top speed hopeful that Zip would be waiting for him. Calling out for Zip, Ben heard a “Yip, yip” coming from under the boardwalk, and there was Zip snagged on a wooden post. Reunited at last beneath the boardwalk, the two short friends shared a hug, lick, scratch, and a yawn, and, of course, a bag of popcorn. Punctuated with rhyming, the flow of this book has a nice sense of suspense which will keep children guessing, where’s Zip?

     This title is Joanne Linden’s first fiction book for children. She is also the author of two nonfiction titles for children; Shih Tzus and Yorkshire Terriers. Tom Goldsmith’s beautiful watercolour Illustrations have a fun comical element. Goldsmith has also illustrated the children’s book The Pocket Mommy and has numerous publications in various magazines.

Recommended.

Kaitlyn Vardy is a Children’s Librarian at the Prince George Public Library in Prince George, BC.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.
Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364
Hosted by the University of Manitoba.
 

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