School Library Journal Starred Review

PreS-Gr 2-The team who created The Remarkable Farkle McBride (S & S, 2000) now puts forth a delightful story of an art aficionado who happens to be a squirrel. The rodent visits the Metropolitan Museum of Art regularly, peering in through the skylight at his favorite works. One day, he slips into the paintbox of a student who'd been copying the great masters and becomes a stowaway on her journey home. All summer he explores the wonder of color and process while she sleeps, his tail serving as a brush, until he has enough art to start his own gallery atop Central Park's carousel. The last scene is a foldout of park friends with paper cups and cheese, attending his opening. The rhymed text sparkles with pleasing sounds like "beguiler" and "alizarin crimson," or intriguing terms such as "peregrination," all the while remaining completely accessible. White pages of narrative are splattered with paint. Lithgow's reading on the CD is brimming with texture and playful pomposity. The mixed-media illustrations depict an utterly fetching protagonist displaying a range of moods and poses. Endpapers reveal "self-portraits," with nods to Rembrandt and Rockwell. Kids will never again look at squirrels in quite the same way; indeed, they will wish to meet Micawber.-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Horn Book

Central Park squirrel Micawber enjoys looking at famous paintings through the skylight of a nearby museum. One day, he follows a young artist home from the museum and, as she sleeps, uses her paint and his bushy tail to create some art of his own. Written in lofty, fluid rhyme and illustrated with unaccountably drab mixed-media images, the story squanders its fine premise by failing to engage the emotions.

Kirkus Reviews

Now that Madonna's a mama, it's only a matter of time before she publishes her first children's book. Imagine a touch-and-feel, some pop-ups, and a few lift-the-flaps. Whatever the case, the Material Girl might want to take a lesson from Lithgow, a celebrity who's mastered the medium. Like the actor's previous efforts ( The Remarkable Farkle McBride , 2000; Marsupial Sue , 2001), his latest offering is poised for the bestseller list. The story is set in Central Park and stars the titular squirrel, an aspiring artist. Lithgow's jaunty rhymes roll off the tongue as Micawber admires the Met's collection: "Through the windows he'd gaze at Van Dyck and / van Gogh, / Appraise every Rembrandt and Titian. / He would scrutinize Rubens, peruse each Rousseau, / Inspect each Lautrec and Cassat and Miro. / He would find a new favorite each time he would go, / And nobody charged him admission." He also meets his mentor. When the stranger packs up after a day spent reproducing Monet, Micawber stows away in her supply box. Payne's realistic illustrations are bathed in a mysterious light, then flecked with color, as Micawber sneaks out at night to experiment with the woman's paints. Through art, Micawber's world is transformed. So is his tail, which he uses as a paintbrush. A final gatefold reveals Micawber's creations hanging on the walls of his own "museum" with the requisite gala opening. The collaboration is perfectly charming from start to finish and—take note, Madonna—it comes with a CD of Lithgow reading the text. (Picture book. 4-8)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

According to <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">PW, "The team behind <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">The Remarkable Farkle McBride returns with another high-spirited tale celebrating the arts," this time starring a squirrel who is a lover of the fine art of painting. Ages 4-8. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Nov.)