Shrunken Head

School Library Journal

K-Gr 2
"Once upon a time," begins this story within a story, as Grandpa tries to take young Barney's mind off his itchy chicken pox. He tells of his adventures when he and his pal Doc Storkmeyer were exploring the jungle on bicycles. They encountered the poison-arrow-throwing, drum-beating Pooches, whose tribal queen designated Grandpa to be her king. When he rejected her romantic offer, she ordered her subjects to "use the shrink juice." Even though poor Doc suffered a head-shrinking, Grandpa cleverly engineered the duo's escape and restored his friend's head to normal size. This brush with terror is really just a rollicking tall tale; the hilarious cartoon drawings of the dogs dancing around their cauldron of vile green stuff and the boxes with silly dialogue throughout will make children laugh and eagerly await a fourth installment.
—Gloria KosterCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Cazet returns with a third reader in the Grandpa Spanielson's Chicken Pox Stories series. Barney's still itchy, and after Grandma drives off to market, Grandpa lets loose with another consummately distracting whopper. Seems once upon a time, he was a famous explorer. As he and Dr. Storkmeyer bicycled deep in the jungle, a horde of Pooches (diminutive canine headhunters) ambushed them, shooting tiny arrows into their tires. The yarn lampoons B-movie plotting, as amorous, extra-large Queen Peekatmyknees, rebuffed by Grandpa, orders Dr. Storkmeyer dipped headfirst in a cauldron of shrink juice. The pastel watercolors of the sickroom give way to bold jungle greens and the browns of a slew of busy Pooches, whose nose bones don't evoke terror so much as chew toys. Dr. Storkmeyer does suffer a temporary noggin reduction (handily amended by Grandpa's bicycle pump), but it all wraps nicely, with Grandpa and Dr. S. trading the tale's best one-liners at the close. Kids will itch for a fourth. (Easy reader. 5-8)