The Wing Shop - Softcover

Grade 1-3-- Matthew has recently moved and longs to return to his old neighborhood. One day he happens upon a windblown, red-haired child named Lucy Featherman, who outfits him, in turn, with wings from a seagull, a bat, a biplane, and finally, a bee. Eventually Matthew, like most questers, learns that he can't go home again. Gammell's colored-pencil renderings are--as expected--superb. His vibrant watercolor hues and whimsical characters are reminiscent of those found in his illustrations for Lyon's Come a Tide (Orchard Bks., 1990) and Ackerman's Song and Dance Man (Knopf, 1988). Each spread is filled with his unique, intoxicating treatment of light and shadow, of space (his skies are breathtaking), of flying--and falling. Wit and humor abound on every page; buildings are skewed appealingly; clouds, trees, and walls harbor subtle images that will intrigue readers of all ages. There's more than a bit of Icarus in this tale; a gull-winged Matthew plummets seaward while a wiley shark lurks below. Unfortunately, the text comes nowhere near Gammell's artistry. His work is airborne, while Woodruff's is consistently pedestrian and self-conscious. --Eve Larkin, Chicago Public Library
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.