Mary Smith (Bccb Blue Ribbon Picture Book Awards (Awards))
PreSchool-Grade 3-In the days before alarm clocks, people like Smith had an important job in England-they were "knocker-ups," hired to wake the townsfolk for a few pence each week. The opening archival photograph establishes the woman as a historical figure, hand on hip, aiming a peashooter. What follows is a colorful tale of one day in her life, told with energetic prose and delightfully bold color illustrations. The peas hit windows: "TOCK! TOCK! TOCK!" "PLIK PLOK!" "CLICK CLACK SNAP!" rousing the laundry maids, the fishmonger, and the sleepy mayor, who sums up the contribution of the woman's humble work to the functioning of the community: "Without you- everyone would still be asleep in bed, no one would be working, and I wouldn't have a town to run-because everything would be shut down!" The ending has a humorous twist. Outlined in black, U'Ren's art has a clean, graphic appearance that perfectly complements the simplicity of the story. Particularly amusing are the expressions on the characters' faces. A historical note gives supplemental information about the real Mrs. Mary Smith and the role of the knocker-ups. A rollicking read.Lee Bock, Glenbrook Elementary School, Pulaski, WICopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.