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Summary
Summary
Meet Brownie, a little girl with a flair for the frou-frou, and Pearl, her feisty feline sidekick! They're heading out on the town for a birthday party, and the celebration is certain to be filled with friends and presents and games and treats. But when Brownie feels shy about ringing the doorbell, will Pearl be able to revive her stepping-out spirit?
With its simple, snappy sentences and bright, adorable artwork, the Brownie & Pearl series is a playful introduction to the power of the picture book experience.
Author Notes
Cynthia Rylant was born on June 6, 1954 in Hopewell, Virginia. She attended and received degrees at Morris Harvey College, Marshall University, and Kent State University.
Rylant worked as an English professor and at the children's department of a public library, where she first discovered her love of children's literature.
She has written more than 100 children's books in English and Spanish, including works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Her novel Missing May won the 1993 Newbery Medal and A Fine White Dust was a 1987 Newbery Honor book. Rylant wrote A Kindness, Soda Jerk, and A Couple of Kooks and Other Stories, which were named as Best Book for Young Adults. When I was Young in the Mountains and The Relatives Came won the Caldecott Award.
She has many popular picture books series, including Henry and Mudge, Mr. Putter and Tabby and High-Rise Private Eyes. (Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
A birthday party ("Cats are invited") is the outing spotlighted in Newbery Medalist Rylant's sweet snippet of a story, first in a planned series, which introduces a happy if a bit timid girl (Brownie) and her similarly sanguine cat (Pearl). As they arrive at their destination, a front stoop festooned with balloons, Brownie has second thoughts: "Uh-oh. Brownie feels shy. Maybe she'll go home." But Pearl leaps through the cat door, forcing the issue ("Now Brownie has to knock"). She's warmly welcomed and enjoys games, cake, and ice cream. Short, snappy sentences ("Look! Pearl went in the kitty door!"), a bold font, and spot-on themes for this age level-birthday party, spunky pet, and the rewards of overcoming shyness-tailor this for girls just beginning to read on their own. Bubblegum pink and lime green pop from Biggs's (the Roscoe Riley Rules series) digitally rendered cartoon art, which features such endearing flourishes as Brownie's mismatched striped socks and floral dress, as well as the pink flowers she and Pearl wear in hair and fur. Cheerful from start to finish. Ages 3-5. (Dec.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Computer-generated illustrations in bright pinks, browns, and yellows introduce cheerful young Brownie and her cat, Pearl. "They are going to a party," adorned with big smiles, flowers in their hair, and a wrapped present. But the closer they get, the more anxious and shy Brownie becomes. It isn't until Pearl goes through the kitty door to announce their presence and the other party guests welcome Brownie (still on the stoop) that Brownie finally joins the fun. Spare in vocabulary and illustrative background, the adventure is perfect for toddlers and preschoolers wanting a straightforward narrative complete with familiar objects to identify. The picture book also nicely serves those youngsters who may not even know that they can read yet. Natural language ("There's the house. See all the balloons?") acts as near-captions for illustrations that depict the events of the big day. The best gift of all would be a sequel for this fresh new entry that speaks to the audience of Aggie and Ben (rev. 4/07) and Tiny's Bath (rev. 5/99). From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
What child hasn't eagerly anticipated attending a party only to feel a moment of apprehension and shyness when he or she approaches the balloon-decked front door? So it is with Brownie, a young girl in a bright, flowered smock and charmingly mismatched stockings who has second thoughts when she arrives at a friend's birthday party. Thankfully, she has her cat, Pearl, in tow, and before Brownie can retreat, the outgoing feline slips into the celebration. When Brownie enters the lively, cat-inclusive soirée, she is relieved to find friends, games, and plenty of cake and ice cream. Rylant addresses the challenges and rewards of facing new social situations in short, conversational text perfectly suited to its young audience. Biggs' digitally rendered, cartoonlike illustrations featuring adorably quirky characters with large, round heads; a vibrant fuchsia-centered palette; and lots of eye-catching patterns and flourishes make this first title in the Brownie and Pearl series as delicious and appealing as a triple-layered birthday cake.--McKulski, Kristen Copyright 2009 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-Brownie and her cat Pearl are going to a birthday party. They set off down the street, present in hand, and each with a flower in her hair. Upon arriving at the balloon-festooned house, Brownie suddenly gets a case of the jitters and considers going home. Pearl suffers from no such shyness and enters through the kitty door so Brownie has to knock after all. Of course, the party is great fun with games, cake and ice cream, and more ice cream. Brownie is glad she came to the party and that she has such a bold kitty. This story is essentially a beginning reader in a picture-book format. Rylant's short text ("Brownie likes the party. She plays games. She eats cake.") is illustrated literally by Biggs. His digitally rendered illustrations are full of bright colors, clean lines, great expressions, and white space. Great for beginning readers, shy children, or storytime audiences.-Catherine Callegari, Gay-Kimball Library, Troy, NH (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
The first in a planned eight-book series, Rylant and Biggs's collaboration heralds a feline-human connection worthy of comparison to Mr. Putter and Tabby. It's a good thing that cats are invited to the birthday party when Brownie and her pet Pearl step out, because Brownie is too shy to knock when she arrives at the door. Then Pearl slips through the kitty door, encouraging Brownie to muster up the courage to go inside. A warm welcome, party games, cake, ice cream and "more ice cream" (the second helping claiming its own page opening with a messy-faced, rather queasy-looking Brownie) await her. Digitally produced cartoon-like artwork at times attends to background details and at other times effectively focuses solely on characters to highlight emotions and actions. While this picture book could work well as a read-aloud, its controlled text and uncluttered artwork also opens it up to beginning-readerbook status. Readers of all sorts will look forward to the next time Pearl and Brownie step out together. (Picture book/early reader. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
