Robin's Room - Hardcover

Brown, Margaret Wise

3.43

72 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0786806028 ISBN 13: 9780786806027

Publisher: Hyperion, 2002

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What do you do with a child who paints on doors and windows, hides sneakers full of sand in his parents' bed, and saws the corners off chairs? You give him a room of his own, of course! When Robin's parents agree to turn the renovations over to Robin, it's clear his artistic vision will turn the room, and the book, upside down. From Margaret Wise Brown, one of America's finest children's picture book authors, and the talented team of Steven Johnson and Lou Francher comes a humorous and heartwarming tribute to creative children everywhere and the adults who support them.

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From Publishers Weekly:

This uneven vision of a child's ideal room joins the many and mixed posthumous works by Brown (Two Little Trains; The Dirty Little Boy) already on the bookstore shelf. Robin, an artistic soul, "sawed legs off of chairs./ And he planted flowers in the bathtub." He needs his own room, but when his parents proudly create for him a bedroom in a gauzy rainbow motif, he hates it. "He stamped his foot so hard that his shoe fell off./ `Give me three carpenters, please,' said Robin./ `Why not?' said his mother. `A child's room made by a child.' " However, with its sturdy workbench, spill-proof painting center and flower-filled reading window (all built by three adult carpenters and, weirdly, one giraffe), Robin's perfect space is little more than a grown-up's fantasy of childhood. Johnson and Fancher's (My Many Colored Days) warm frescoes of sky blue and spring green have a sunny charm. The illustrators toy bravely with the layout, supporting Robin's decorating scheme of "turning the fronts of everything to the back" by letting readers flip the book over and read "backward" for several pages; unfortunately, this assisted fun, like Robin's room, lacks the appearance of spontaneity. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist:

Ages 3-7. The artistic duo that created Dr. Seuss' My Many Colored Days (1996) brings life to Brown's never-before-published manuscript. A toddler, Robin, causes no end of trouble for his harried parents, who eventually send him to a room of his own. Unimpressed, Robin stamps his feet, demanding three carpenters to redecorate according to his own liking! His parents agree, and once the renovations are complete, Robin becomes a model child. Johnson and Fancher's vibrant artwork features simple figures, a recurring rainbow motif, and an emphasis on creativity. In the midsection of the text (during the redecoration), children are asked to turn the book upside down and turn pages backward to continue through the story. Adult readers may question parents rewarding misbehavior, but Brown's point about allowing children to express their individuality is well taken. Kay Weisman
Copyright � American Library Association. All rights reserved

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