Walker Willy The Dreamer

Willy loves to dream. He dreams that he's a film star, a sumo wrestler, a ballet dancer, a painter, an explorer, a famous writer, a scuba diver...Sometimes he dreams that he can't run but he can fly. He dreams he's a giant or he's tiny, a beggar or a king, in a strange landscape or all at sea. He dreams of fierce monsters and super heroes, of the past and, sometimes, the future. Willy's dreamland is a gallery of amazing and magical pictures, each one magnificently executed and packed with bananas and slyly surreal details that cannot fail to intrigue and delight. The pictures pay homage to famous paintings by the likes of Dali, Magritte and Henri Rousseau, as well as film and book characters and much more. Editorial Reviews From Publishers Weekly In his fifth book about Willy the chimp, Browne gives a smart, playful nod to Magritte, Rousseau, Dali and other artists whose paintings were often more the stuff of dreams than of real life. Browne's whimsical borrowings and witty visual puns stretch this volume's appeal far beyond the typical picture-book audience. And though Willy's youngest fans may not get the full picture, they'll likely take a naif's pleasure in the dream-like quirks and incongruities packed into each watercolor. Dozing in an armchair, the chimp envisions himself a movie star in guises that include Mary Poppins, Dracula and Charlie Chaplin; a singer who's a ringer for Elvis; a ballet dancer in a lacy tutu and toe shoes fashioned from bananas; a famous writer surrounded by simian versions of Sir John Tenniel's Cheshire Cat, Mad Hatter and other residents of Wonderland. And from the moment they view Browne's fetching cover illustration, kids will keep their eyes peeled for the inventively placed bananas in Willy's dream scenes. A parody of the famous picture inscribed "Ceci n'est pas une pipe" doubles in irreverence when a curved banana half fills in for the pipe; a Cowardly Lion's tail ends in a flourish of banana. Whether readers are wholly untutored or art history experts, the closer they look, the more jokes they will find. Fresh, funny and full of surprises. Ages 4-up. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. From Booklist Gr. 2^-4, younger with a grown-up. This fifth picture book in Browne's series about Willy the chimp represents quite a departure from the others. Using a noticeably larger format, Browne has taken his endearing chimp and placed him center stage in a series of framed, often well-known paintings, which are meant to be visual representations of Willy's fantastic dreams. Willy appears as Elvis Presley, as a sumo wrestler, as a ballet dancer, and as a superhero. Sometimes Willy is not presented as a particular character. Instead, he's simply depicted as part of a strange landscape, which calls up the work of such famous, possibly familiar artists as Salvador Daliand Winslow Homer. There is no plot, but children will enjoy the superbly illustrated book for its imaginative and humorous artwork, and teachers can use it to inspire youngsters to create their own book of fantasies, or to introduce the artists and paintings Browne is spoofing. Lauren Peterson --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.