uncles

Uncles and Antlers

author Lisa Wheeler

illustrator Brian Floca

ISBN-10: 0689864698

ISBN-13: 978-0689864698

Activities

★Reindeer Crafts

Excerpt:

Seven uncles, every year,

seven uncles, travel here―

shaggy coats, scarves of red,

two tall antlers on each head.

Review:

With a peppy rhyme and zoom-zoom illustrations, this introduces a whole new crew of Santa's reindeer. A young reindeer has seven uncles, each one unique: "Uncle Dunce from Cameroon / bellows out an Elvis tune." Crazy Uncle Sy is "a fearless sort of guy" who gives "most any stunt a try." Each uncle has a signature characteristic--strong, cool, brave--but the narrator notes they all have one thing in common: she is their favorite niece. When all gather in one place, they are ready for their yearly job: pulling Santa's sleigh. A dynamic read-aloud, this also crackles with humor, especially in the line-and-watercolor illustrations, which feature appropriately clad reindeer, with goofy expressions, skiing, dancing, and driving across the pages. Kids may wonder what happened to Donner and Blitzen et al., but they'll welcome these interlopers.

Ilene Cooper