Peter Bently's perfectly cadenced rhymes skip blithely from page to page, begging to be read aloud, while Helen Oxenbury's illustrations…are generously detailed and gracefully expressive delights…This one is sure to become a full-on family favorite at bedtime. Prepare for repeated readings.
—The Washington Post
Fort making is one of the great enterprises of childhood, but just in case the art has been lost to some, Bently (The Great Dog Bottom Swap) and Oxenbury (There's Going to Be a Baby) open their felicitous collaboration with what is essentially an illustrated instruction manual: "A big cardboard box,/ an old sheet and some sticks,/ a couple of trash bags,/ a few broken bricks,/ a fine royal throne/ from a ragged old quilt,/ a drawbridge, a flag—/ and the castle was built." Declaring himself king, Jack leads his friends Zack and Caspar in defending the fort against a menagerie of imaginary creatures. But when Jack's knights are carried off by giants (their parents), Jack finds that a solo defense of the fort is no picnic: "He wished he was anything else but a king." Bently's verse never misses a beat, and Oxenbury shifts between monochromatic, engraving-like drawings and pale watercolors; the images feel as if they were drawn from a classic fairy tale book and contemporary life simultaneously. It's an enchanting tribute to both full-throttle pretend play and the reassurance of a parent's embrace. Ages 3–5. (Aug.)
At once contemporary and classic.” — The New York Times
“Though the characters are wholly modern, there is a timelessness to the cycle of excitement, apprehension and parental comfort that should give this lovely book a long stay on the nursery shelf.” — The Wall Street Journal
* “It’s an enchanting tribute to both full-throttle pretend play and the reassurance of a parent’s embrace.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review
* “A tale of make-believe that children will delight in hearing again and again.” — School Library Journal, starred review
“The rhyming verse, large trim size, and detailed illustrations…make this a suitable story for group sharing, while the sweet, intimate tone will make it a family favorite.” — Booklist
“From this simple premise of imaginative play, Bently and Oxenbury create a classically sweet picture book.” — Horn Book
“This one is sure to become a full-on family favorite at bedtime.” — The Washington Post
“Altogether, ‘King Jack’ is just about perfect.” — The Sacramento Bee
Altogether, ‘King Jack’ is just about perfect.
This one is sure to become a full-on family favorite at bedtime.
From this simple premise of imaginative play, Bently and Oxenbury create a classically sweet picture book.
The rhyming verse, large trim size, and detailed illustrations…make this a suitable story for group sharing, while the sweet, intimate tone will make it a family favorite.
Though the characters are wholly modern, there is a timelessness to the cycle of excitement, apprehension and parental comfort that should give this lovely book a long stay on the nursery shelf.
At once contemporary and classic.
This celebration of imaginative play is deftly narrated by Andrew Watts. After building their fort, King Jack and his loyal men, Zack and baby Caspar, courageously battle dragons until the loyal men are taken away by giants. The fort building and dragon battling are performed with the right amount of excitement and energy. Jack battles bravely until a thing with four feet comes for him, and then, like his loyal men, he is whisked off by a giant. Young listeners will experience just enough spine-tingling excitement before discovering that the giants are Jack’s parents who come to put him to bed in his warm, safe house. Calmness descends with Watts’s reassuring narration, leaving the listener quietly content. Pacing is perfect for listening only or for following along. J.K.R. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine
