Knuckleheads

Description

Trouble you for a game of hangnail? How about some finger-painting? What about a good ol' game of thumb wrestling? From Handsel and Gretel nibbling on a house made of finger food to Handerella trying to win over the handsome Finger Prints, "Knuckleheads" is hands down fun-knee! Earburt and Toeper give it two thumbs up! The combination of Joan Holub's punny humour and Michael Slack's on-the-nose pictures make this a must-read for all ages.

Joan Holub's right hand has written many books for children. So far, her left hand has shown no writing talent, and spends most of its time lazing around in lavish costume jewellery. Joan enjoys thumb wrestling and hand tools, and is often seen wearing garden gloves, oven mitts, or glittery fingernail polish-depending on the occasion. Michael Slack is a serious artist, serious character designer, and serious occasional animator. He has illustrated seriously for Time, Nickelodeon, Ranger Rick, and The New York Times. He is the illustrator of Ick, a serious game published by Chronicle Books. This is his first serious children's book. He is very, very, serious.

What is the sound of one hand clapping? Or perhaps a better question would be, if someone puns alone in the woods, is it still funny? This collection of four fractured fairy tales prominently features body parts without being bawdy. Most of the characters, like Handsel and Gretel, have hands for heads (though they also have arms and hands in the normal arrangement). Others, like Handerella's ugly stepsisters, have feet atop their bodies, while Nose White's most prominent protuberance is obviously her proboscis. Thumbelina gets short shrift, being a single (inexplicably blue) digit whose story is told in just two pages. Jokes, both visual and verbal, abound, as do puns and other forms of wordplay. Repeated readings may reveal some of the more subtle humor, but most of it will slap readers across the face immediately and (dare we say it?) quite handily. Not, perhaps, for a wide audience, but there are definitely those who will be willing to give this quirky work a hand (sorry!) and a loud hurrah. Original and entertaining. --Kirkus Reviews