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"Aunt Nancy and the Bothersome Visitors" by Phyllis Root

Author:

Phyllis Root

Illustrator:

David Parkins

Publisher:

Candlewick, 2007

Reviewed by:

John Warren Stewig, Carthage College

Fully painted, intensely colored chapter openings for the four short, humorous stories precede within-chapter silhouettes, providing art on nearly every page. Readers are introduced to the foils for wily Aunt Nancy on the title page: Old Man Trouble, Cousin Lazybones, Old Woeful, and Mister Death. Running exactly 14 pages each, these droll tales in a chapter-book size format, provide a reassuring bridge between picture books and longer novels for young readers just beginning to strike out on their own. Engaging figures of speech abound: “…bad luck was hopping around like rabbits at a family reunion,” “…so lazy even his shadow didn’t get up and follow him around,” and “…wouldn’t know a hint if it bit her on the behind,” are examples.