The Flying Bed
Grade 2–4—In Florence, Guido is a second-generation baker who inherits neither his father's talent nor his good character. Both flaws cause his business to suffer, and eventually money grows so scarce that Guido sells all the furniture. After his wife, Maria, furiously demands at least a bed to sleep in, Guido finds an enchanted bed that can fly at night. It takes the pair on wild rides over the city and into the land of the master bakers where they accept a bag of magic yeast. After this, their business booms until Guido gets greedy and foolishly exchanges some of the yeast for what turn out to be counterfeit bills. Then the business goes to pieces, and Maria gets sick and goes on another midnight flight in the bed, and when she returns, things again turn around for the hapless couple. The main problem with this text-intensive illustrated story is that it covers a lot of ground and then fails to make much of a point. The plot is entirely too complicated and arbitrary. The imagery is rich and wonderful, the photorealistic details in the art are nuanced, the illusion of light playing across each page is inspired, and every feature, down to the veins and knuckles in Guido's hand, is rendered flawlessly. But the story is downright puzzling, and then it abruptly crash-lands into a "happy" ending that makes little sense. Thompson's art is notable, but this is not Willard's best work.—Catherine Threadgill, Charleston County Public Library, SCCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.