Chasing Dad

Emma Bean, a homemade toy rabbit, joins Molly at birth and shares her trials and triumphs as she grows from infant to little girl

PreSchool-K-"Once there was a rabbit and she had a girl." So begins the story of Emma Bean, made from the "scraps of long-ago dresses" by Molly's grandmother. The two are inseparable, from the child's infancy through Emma accompanying her on the first day of kindergarten, where they find new friends in Sara Louise and her bear Gloria. The text, which gently highlights the events in the pair's relationship, is simple and often rhythmic. The illustrations, from the glowing colors of the Maxfield Parrish-like cover to the intimate picture of Molly in bed whispering in Emma's ear with the shadows of night falling across them, capture readers' attention. The artist plays with light, color, and perspective to enhance the mood of the story. Occasionally there is an awkwardly rendered perspective as in the picture of Molly and her father tossing the bunny, which places viewers on the ceiling looking down, yet most are successful. Each full-page picture, set in a white border surrounded by a thin reddish line, evokes the feeling of an unfolding memoir, like pictures in an album. Kathryn Galbraith's Laura Charlotte (Philomel, 1990) is similar in both tone and in the lushness of the illustrations, although Emma Bean focuses more on the relationship between the child and her toy. A book that will appeal to many children.
Karen James, Louisville Free Public Library, KY
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Pieced together from the "scraps of long-ago dress," the button-eyed bunny Emma Bean is sent as a gift to the infant Molly. The toy's first encounter with "her" girl is not promising: "there she was, face-to-face with a baby. . . . Its mouth was wide open and it was crying. The noise was just terrible." In the years that follow, the stoic stuffed animal accompanies Molly to the doctor's office, shares Molly's meals, participates willingly in Molly's father's game of Toss the Bunny, and listens to Molly's bedtime secrets. Van Leeuwen's tender yet unsentimental text is studded with telling details: runaway Molly packs "her pillow and pajamas and crayons and motorcycle." Realistic watercolors echo the story's moods through clever use of light and shadow. While avoiding an anthropomorphic approach, the nostalgia-tinged illustrations give a sense of the myriad of emotions that seem to emanate from the toy rabbit. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

A particularly endearing stuffed toy--a very long-earred rabbit, made by Molly's grandmother before her birth--survives the affection of the normally rambunctious child. Toddler Molly is ``feeding'' the toy (while eating independently from a gloriously messy high-chair tray) when she names Emma Bean with what are almost her first words; she shares strawberries with her, plus the bath that follows; later, she makes her clothes, though she's sometimes rough, or neglects her to play with friends. Still, Emma Bean goes along on Molly's first day of school; and when Grandmother observes that she ``looks all worn out,'' Molly declares, ``I am going to keep her forever.'' Wijngaard's lucid, beautifully designed watercolors are exquisitely detailed; his characterizations--the rabbit is appealingly homely, while Molly has a winsome mop of red curls and a sturdy, active little body--are in perfect harmony with the carefully honed story's tender yet unsentimental tone. A fine readaloud or early young reader. (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.