Fog

From Publishers Weekly An ominous fog "rolls down the mountain" and wraps itself around a house where a family huddles inside watching "the cloud of silver cotton candy" grow closer. As Grandma repeats the phrase "It wants something," the family members try to ward off their fears with silly suggestions: the fog wants the leaky faucet fixed; it wants the family to get another cat. Grandma finally decides that "the fog came for music," and what began as a gloomy day turns into one of singing and dancing. The gray, luminiscent paintings capture the fog's enveloping presence; as the mood lightens, more color is subtly introduced into each scene. In both text and pictures, however, no mood is set; the narrative begins and ends too abruptly. Though this simple story attempts to demonstrate how a strange occurrence of nature can create a household event, the tone seems at odds with the proceedings. Ages 4-up. Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. From School Library Journal Kindergarten-Grade 2-- When a heavy fog rolls in, a family must stay inside until it passes by. The grandmother announces that it wants something, and the family quietly listens for what it could be. They come up with various suggestions until the woman finally says that it wants music. They all dust off their musical instruments and have fun singing and playing until the heavy mist drifts away. This eerie story is sure to cause children to be fearful of fog; even when it clears, there is still a creepy feeling about the book. Adding to this uneasiness are all the gray shadows and dark forbidding colors in the illustrations. Even the grandmother is scary as she points her finger toward the window and talks about the fog as if it were some kind of evil force. A slow, unnecessarily frightening book that describes something in nature that really isn't scary at all.