Publishers Weekly
- Publisher's Weekly
"Cleary has created yet another charming and homey tale," said PW of this domestic yarn about a pair of twins and their new red boots. Ages 3-up. (Aug.)
Children's Literature
- Marilyn Courtot
The twins, Janet and Jimmy, are excited. Mom thinks their feet have grown enough that they need new shoes. A trip to the shoe store proves her wrong, so they get red boots instead. The twins don't want to take them off, even to go to bed. Unfortunately, it just doesn't want to rain, so they can't go stomping around in puddles in their new boots. Dad, however, comes to the rescue when he washes the car. It's an ordinary story, just right for young kids, and it is given a special charm by the pencil and watercolor illustrations. 1997 (orig.
School Library Journal
PreS-K Preschool twins Janet and Jimmy are disappointed when they go to the shoe store and learn that they haven't outgrown their old shoes yet; they had anticipated new shoes. When an offer of balloons doesn't ease their dismay, Mother buys boots for them instead. The boots are worn through dinner, bedtime, and breakfast. Outside in their boots, the twins are disappointed again, this time to find that there are no puddles to splash in. Now it's Daddy to the rescue; he makes puddles for the children as he washes the car. Alas, alas, the echoes here are not of Ramona, but of Dick and Jane. There is neither tension nor humor to catch a child's interest; the modest problems, if problems they are, get instant resolution from Mother and Daddy. Alas, too, for the endorsement of that common but deplorable American fix: if you're unhappy, I'll buy you something. The illustrations, in watercolors and pastel, are competent and pleasant, but curiously reflect the Dick-and-Jane ambiance of the textpants for Jimmy, skirts on Janet. Janet D. French, Centennial School District Libraries, Warminster, Pa.
