PILUTTI, Deb. The City Kid & the Suburb Kid. illus. by Linda Bleck. unpaged. CIP. Sterling. May 2008. PLB $14.95. ISBN 978-1-4027-4002-2. LC 2007025447.
PreS-Gr 3–In this takeoff on Aesop’s fable, city-dweller Jack can’t wait to visit his cousin Adam in the ’burbs. Once there, the boys enjoy bicycling through the neighborhood, fishing, shopping, watching a movie, buying ice cream, and sleeping outside. But Jack begins to miss the city and is happy to get back home. Turn the book over and it’s Adam’s chance to visit Jack’s apartment where the boys repeat the same adventures in the same order with the flavor and sounds of an urban environment thrown in. In the end, Adam decides that his favorite place is home as well. The author and illustrator do a great job of showing how a slightly different perspective still yields the same fun for the boys. The full-color, slightly flattened, retro cartoon illustrations “using gouache and at least 10 brushes” perfectly capture the changing scenes, and readers will agree that it’s tough to decide which experience–city or suburb–is more fun.–Marge Loch-Wouters, Menasha Public Library, WI