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K-Gr 2The hook this story hangs on is a special ribbon dress that the author describes (in an endnote) as a traditional Mohawk costume. Ribbons flutter from the yoke of a new dress that Jillians grandmother has just made her. A man dressed in formal attire comes running down the rural road in front of the girls house yelling that hes late for his wedding. He has no laces in his shoes, so Jillian tears two ribbons from her dress to tie them. She also gives him her brothers skateboard and directs him to the church. Next comes the bride, with her hair all askew. This time Jillians ribbons tie up the womans hair and a bicycle sends her on her way. By now the pattern is set. The best man and a group of wedding guests use up more ribbons until the childs dress is a mess and, much to her grandmothers dismay, shes not allowed into the church. The bride and groom spot her sitting on the steps and ask her to be their flower girl. Munsch is a storyteller and the book may work better as an oral tale. Fernandess gouache and colored-pencil artwork is average in quality though it does capture movement well. Everything seems a bit too pat. This is not an essential purchase, but the contemporary Native American protagonist may broaden the books appeal.Judith Gloyer, Milwaukee Public Library Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Featuring a variety of voices, Munschs (Love You Forever) light, energetic paper-over-board book is well suited for reading aloud. Just after Jillian dons a brand-new ribbon dress, with pink and red ribbons flowing from under the bib-like collar, she encounters a tuxedo-clad fellow running down the road, laceless shoes in hand. Chiming, Im late. Im lost!/ Im late. Im lost! the harried groom fears that he is going to miss his own wedding. Jillian helpfully tears two ribbons off her dress, uses them to lace his shoes and lends him a skateboard to expedite his trip to the church. To the tune of similar refrains, the girl hands out ribbons (and a variety of transports) to bail out the tardy bride, whose hair is disheveled; a family with a wedding gift in need of wrapping, etc. Though Jillians good deeds leave her dress in tatters, the happy (and grateful) couple ask her to be their flower girl. Fernandess (A Difficult Day, reviewed below) cartoony gouache and colored-pencil pictures reinforce the slapstick tenor of the tale. She strews the artwork with diverting particulars, such as a host of buoyant frogs on each page (one even finds its way into the flower girls bouquet). A bizarre extraneous endnote mentions that Jillian is a Mohawk from the Kahnawake reserve near Montreal and her ribbon dress is a traditional Mohawk costume, which imposes an unnecessary and jarring historical context on this effervescent story. Ages 3-6. (May)