From Publishers Weekly
Shirley Temple would feel right at home in these books. The pages are filled with attractive, smiling--and for the most part white--people, and the stories could easily inspire a tap dance or two. For the first installment of what looks to be an ongoing series, Steel has hatched a total of six titles. Her books introduce Martha, a curly-blonde-haired moppet with freckles who lives in San Francisco, and Max, a curly-brown-haired moppet with freckles who lives in New York. Each tale focuses on their wrestlings with one of childhood's thorny problems: the impending arrival of a sibling, divorce and the subsequent remarriage of a parent, the anxieties of moving to a new school, etc. To her credit, Steel (who is the mother of nine) has zeroed in on many legitimate concerns with empathy. But the resulting stories are cloyingly saccharine and far too long for their picture-book format. Of the two characters, Max--with his down-to-earth fireman father and nurse mother--may be easier for some children to relate to than Martha, who attends private school and vacations in places like Disneyland, Hawaii and Paris. Rogers's watercolors are appropriately upbeat. Ages 4-7.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 2-- The relentless symmetry of this series' design extends to the plots of the books. In each, the child protagonist is confronted with a problem, worries about it a whole lot, but, when the problem is actually dealt with, finds that things aren't so terrible after all. Martha makes a new friend, only to see her move back to Paris and, in Martha's New School , worries whether she'll know anybody when her family moves to Sausalito. As it turns out, her family visits Madeleine in France and Martha discovers that everyone she meets in Sausalito is nice. Max' father, a fireman, is injured on the job, but Max visits him in the hospital and goes with him to the medal ceremony after he heals. In Max's New Baby, he learns that he's going to have a new sibling and frets about the ramifications, including whether he wants a brother or a sister. His mother has twins (one each), thus resolving the problem. This child world is illustrated in shades of pink and violet and peopled with apple-cheeked, bright-eyed protagonists complete with Pepsodent smiles. Nothing is achieved by any action or increased understanding on Max or Martha's part. They simply go through each experience, as described by Steel in sugary sentence fragments, with the comprehension that if they just trust the loving adults around them, everything will work out. And it does--here in fairy-tale land. The characters exist as carefully created images marched across color-coordinated backgrounds to demonstrate a determinedly comforting perspective, like brave little sailors on the Good Ship Lollipop. This creates a certain lack of suspense and believability and an air of condescension. As a result, the laudable intent of the books is marred by poor plotting, little characterization, and a patronizing style. --Christine Behrmann, New York Public Library
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
