Available:*
Library | Material Type | Shelf Number | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
Searching... Central Library | Juvenile Book | CB GOOD | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Hillview Branch | Juvenile Book | CB GOOD | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Mount Washington Branch | Juvenile Book | CB GOOD | Searching... Unknown |
Bound With These Titles
On Order
Summary
Summary
In this colorful and fun adventure, best friends Kondo and Kezumi find a map that leads to the wonders of the unknown, perfect for fans of Ivy & Bean and Mercy Watson.
Kondo is big. Kezumi is little. They lived on an island with fruit trees and berry bushes and flitter-birds and fluffle-bunnies. When a surprise bottle washes ashore, they discover a map with a mysterious message: WE ARE NOT ALONE. Kezumi wants to follow the map and explore the world. Kondo wants to stay home and pick fruit from the fruit tree and berries from the berry bushes. But once Kezumi builds the perfect boat, the best friends set sail together to see . . . well, they don't know!So begin the adventures of Kondo and Kezumi, where islands of cheese and giant mountains await. Rising stars David Goodner and Andrea Tsurumi team up for this illustrated chapter book series filled with charming quirks and unexpected discoveries. Get ready to set foot on uncharted territory with classic themes of friendship, community, and exploration.
Author Notes
David Goodner has worked at the Arlington Public Library for the last twenty-one years and counting. He is the author of Ginny Goblin Is Not Allowed To Open This Box , and its follow-up, Ginny Goblin Is Not Allowed To Have A Monster For A Pet . He lives in North Texas with his wife and two uncommonly pleasant cats.
Andrea Tsurumi is the author and illustrator of Accident! and Crab Cake , as well as numerous comics. She illustrated Not Your Nest by Gideon Sterer and Girls Who Code by Reshma Saujani. She was born and raised in New York, where she got an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, and she now lives in Philadelphia with her spouse and their dog. When she's not inventing croissant-based animals, she likes reading about ordinary and ridiculous history.
Reviews (3)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 1--3--Best friends Kondo and Kezumi, who live on an island, differ in many ways. Kondo is big and cautious. Kezumi is small and adventurous. When they find a bottle with a map inside, Kezumi wants to build a boat and embark on an adventure. Faithful Kondo is scared but willing to go with his friend. They encounter sea jumpers, islands made of cheese and lava, and eventually a giant anthropomorphized volcano named Albert. As Kondo and Kezumi grow homesick, Albert claims their boat blew away. After Albert confesses he caused the wind, Kondo and Kezumi build another boat and promise to come back to visit their new friend. In the spirit of an animated cartoon, lively color illustrations depict this story of friendship and adventure. VERDICT Recommended for readers who are transitioning to chapter books and who are fans of animated adventure television shows.--Lindsay Persohn, University of South Florida, Tampa
Publisher's Weekly Review
After she finds an intriguing map in a bottle, adventurous Kezumi--a small orange island dweller--persuades her much warier and larger companion, yellow Kondo, to build a boat and explore. One of the islands they find is made of cheese, another is dark and frightening, and the third is the home of a friendly volcano named Albert, whose loneliness requires deft handling. (When they discover that they can't leave the island because their boat has disappeared, Kezumi suspects Albert: "IT DID BLOW AWAY... BECAUSE I BLEW IT AWAY," the landmass confesses.) In prose that's both simple and dynamic, Goodner offers a realistic sequence about boat building: "They had to make it float. Then they had to make it sail. Then they had to make it turn." Food-gathering and other foraging scenes add fascinating survival elements, and smooth, polished artwork by Tsurumi features monster-esque characters with expressive faces as well as luxuriant flora and fauna. The personal relationships, various environments, and building projects provide multiple points of engagement to keep new readers motivated. Ages 6--8. Agent: Stephen Barr, Writers House. (Sept.)
Booklist Review
Kondo and Kezumi are best friends who live on a lush island. One day, a bottle washes onto the beach, and Kezumi, who resembles a small, orange axolotl, fishes a map from it that depicts numerous other islands. This gets Kezumi thinking about what lies beyond her home, and the desire to explore takes root. Kondo--who looks like a large, marigold pillow on legs--is less inclined to leave home, but his love for being with Kezumi overrides his fears. They work together to build a boat from an old bathtub and set sail with map in hand. Tsurumi's imaginative, humorous illustrations appear in saturated colors on every page--sometimes filling it and other times breaking up the text with spot art. From an island made entirely of cheese to one containing a friendly volcano, the pair's explorations are guaranteed to delight young readers. The action transpires over 10 brief chapters, with short sentences and plenty of dialogue to support newly independent readers ready to adventure into longer books.