Pink Magic [Hardcover]

PreSchool-Grade 3–It's Eva's birthday and her brother is envious of the cards and letters that the mail carrier delivers to her. Since Nick's favorite color is pink, Eva makes a birthday wish for him to get some great pink mail. The next day, Mr. Moon delivers a watermelon (pink on the inside). A pink flamingo and four pink pigs follow on successive days. Eva enjoys the pink mail, but Nick really wants a letter from someone he loves. At their mother's insistence, the children return the animals, including a pink elephant ready to emerge from Mr. Moon's mailbag. Eva surreptitiously slips a pink envelope into the bag, and Mr. Moon delivers it to Nick. The message reading I love you is from Pinky, Nick's beloved pink rabbit. Napoli has created a brother and sister who refreshingly exude a real warmth for one another. However, the magical elements are a little too tame and spare to fulfill the promise set at the beginning of the story. Cameron's collage-and-acrylic illustrations playfully inhabit the spreads. While the tale does speak to a young child's experience of receiving mail as a wonderful and magical occurrence, the story is lackluster.–Rachel G. Payne, Brooklyn Public Library, NY
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PreS-Gr. 2. Nick yearns for some mail, preferably cards like the ones his little sister, Eva, has received for her birthday. At her party, Eva makes a birthday wish that her brother will receive "great mail. . . . Great pink mail" and blows out all the candles. Over the next few days, mailman Mr. Moon makes a series of unlikely deliveries--a watermelon, a flamingo, and a passel of piglets--before finding Nick the best gift yet in his mailbag. Though the story is imaginative and well written, children may find the magical appearance of the melon and animals as unlikely as the consistently cozy, affectionate relationship between brother and sister. Using varied perspectives, the lively illustrations dramatize each scene in acrylic paintings that incorporate elements of collage. For those willing to suspend disbelief and go with the flow of the story, this little fantasy has a certain charm. Carolyn Phelan
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Nicky wishes he would get something really great in the mail. His sister, Eva, wants to help, so she asks their eccentric mail carrier to bring mail just for him. When the mail carrier finds out that Nicky likes pink, he arrives each day with pink surprises galore--including flamingos and pigs. But what Nicky really wants is a letter, and in the end Eva sends him one that makes him truly happy. From well-known author Donna Jo Napoli comes a fanciful and original new picture book that will delight readers of all ages.

Chad Cameron received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Virginia Commonwealth University and now lives in the San Francisco Bay area. His quirky illustrations have appeared in two previous picture books: WITCHY'S TURNED AROUND HOUSE and GEORGE HOGGLESBERY: GRADE SCHOOL ALIEN.

Donna Jo Napoli has written many novels for children, many of which are adaptations of classic fairy tales, such as BEAST. A professor of English at Swarthmore College, she lives in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania.