Leo Landry is a bookseller and is the author and illustrator of several books for children, including Trick or Treat, Eat Your Peas, Ivy Louise!, Space Boy (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) and Grin and Bear It. He lives in North Easton, Massachusetts.
Based on the title, readers might expect a book of gross humor.
Instead they'll find a sweet story of friendship and competition in
which everyone can be "best of the forest." Woodchuck Chuck is an
artist working in wood and the winner of the Best of the Forest art
contest three years running. Then Scooter the possum shows up. When
his painting Splatter Matters wins first prize, Chuck is angry and
jealous, and he begins to doubt his own abilities. Each of the
eight short chapters begins with a full-page illustration that,
with the chapter heading, hints at what is to come. Pictures
throughout break up the text so new readers will not be
intimidated. Chuck's friends provide kid-level comic relief with
knock-knock jokes. (Though adults may chuckle at Scooter's
similarities to Jackson Pollack and the allusion to current
grass-roots movements, these references will mean nothing to
beginning readers.) With wisdom beyond their years, Chuck's forest
friends counsel him to gracefully accept his second-place
recognition, and he rather quickly realizes that "awards are just
whipped cream on a sweet-potato pie." The final chapter, "Lesson
Learned," guarantees that no kid can miss the message. It's a
kindhearted beginning chapter book, but second-graders may wish it
had some vomit jokes.
- Kirkus Reviews
Chuck Wood is an extraordinarily talented woodchuck. His detailed
wood carvings have won the Best in the Forest art competition for
three years running. Then Scooter Possum, a gifted abstract
painter, arrives in Woodland Forest. At first, Chuck is happy to
have a new friend and artistic companion, but his confidence is
shaken when praise is heaped upon Scooter and his art. Ultimately,
Chuck realizes that friendship and the artistic process are more
important than any first prize trophy. Engaging from the get-go,
Chuck and Scooter are a duo in the tradition of best friends Frog
and Toad. Readers will relate to the overwhelming jealousy, anger,
and self-doubt Chuck feels when Scooter is awarded first place in
the art competition, as well as his great relief after making
amends. The text, printed in an easy-to-read black font against
white and pale backgrounds, features wonderful word repetition and
witty wordplay, including several knock-knock jokes. Chapter
headings cleverly foreshadow forthcoming action, providing a
helpful framework for emerging readers. The uncluttered pencil and
watercolor illustrations focus on interactions between the Woodland
Forest characters; the facial expressions convey emotions and
relationships clearly and humorously. Using distinct black lines
and soft, cheerful colors, the cartoonish illustrations break up
the text into approachable sections within the eight very short
chapters. A delightful story for those transitioning from beginning
readers to chapter books.
- School Library Journal
Woodchuck Chuck creates stunning objets d'art out of wood,
sculptures he proudly enters every year in the Best of the Forest
art contest. When Scooter Possum, a painter, arrives in Woodland
Forest, the gregarious Chuck invites him to stay in his burrow. The
two happily work on their own projects in preparation for the
contest, but green-eyed jealousy and self-doubt creep in when,
first, Scooter makes a better dessert than Chuck (snickerdoodles)
and then nabs the top prize in the art contest. Unhappy with coming
in second, Chuck runs home and angrily smashes one of his
sculptures. It takes his friend Fawn to remind Chuck of what
matters: the joy he takes in making art. Eight short episodic
chapters, each creating a separate, but connected, scene, help
newly independent readers with stopping and starting points in the
text. Numerous earth-toned watercolor and pencil illustrations
preview each chapter; mirror important points in the action; and
accentuate the characters' emotions through subtle changes in
facial expressions. Besides offering a gentle examination of
intrinsic versus extrinsic rewards, Landry uses natural language
and includes a couple of those perennial knee-slappers: knock-knock
jokes. This beginning reader is, without a doubt, as appealing as
Scooter's snickerdoodles.
- The Horn Book Magazine
Ask a Question About this Product More... |