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Harry and Horsie

by Katie Van Camp; Lincoln Agnew, illus.

One moonlit night, Harry and his stuffed, equine sidekick Horsie are awake past their bedtime. Unable to sleep, they work together to retrieve Harry’s brand-new Super Duper Bubble Blooper from the shelf. Soon, bubbles of all shapes and sizes fill the room. Bouncing off the walls and ceilings, the bubbles start to pick up Harry’s toys and float them right out the window. It’s all fun and games until one bubble picks up Horsie and whisks him into the wild blue yonder. What ensues is a nocturnal romp through the solar system, with Harry astride his rocket ship in an urgent search for his beloved friend.

Readers who believe that the best picture books are those that entertain both youngsters and parents may find Katie Van Camp’s text a bit underwhelming. The premise – a child’s imaginative nighttime journey – is one that has been through many, many variations, and this version is over pretty quickly. Happily, though, Lincoln Agnew’s illustrations make up for this deficit. With its retro rockets, satellites, and planets, his graphic style is reminiscent of the golden era of atomic and space-age illustration. It’s also dark, shadowy, and a bit mysterious, though not in a frightening way – kid-friendly noir, if you will. Working together like Harry and Horsie themselves, the words and pictures show that using your imagination can lead to out-of-this-world hijinks, but also that keeping hold of a best friend is worth going to the ends of the universe for.

Interestingly enough, the book’s tow-headed protagonist is based on the son of talk show host David Letterman, for whom Van Camp worked as an au pair, and who prefaces the book with “A Word From Harry’s Dad.” Also, the book’s author and illustrator are donating part of the proceeds to Free the Children, the international child rights organization founded by Craig Kielburger.

 

Reviewer: Kathryn Exner

Publisher: HarperCollins Canada

DETAILS

Price: $22.5

Page Count: 32 pp

Format: Cloth

ISBN: 978-0-05175-598-9

Released: Aug.

Issue Date: 2009-10

Categories: Picture Books

Age Range: 3-6